


Repercussions

by shayasar



Category: Torchwood
Genre: M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2012-11-25
Updated: 2012-11-25
Packaged: 2017-11-19 12:15:34
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 32
Words: 50,789
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/573164
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/shayasar/pseuds/shayasar
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Sometimes the ghosts from the past will get you. And this one came to destroy Jack.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

It was a bright sunny day for once in Cardiff. This July had been unusually sunny and the temperatures were a bit higher than normal. It was in fact so warm that Jack could persuade Ianto to leave his suit jacket and tie in the hub. Now the Captain had managed to drag a grinning Ianto over the Plass, also only in his shirt, sleeves rolled up like Ianto. 

"Jack, where are you taking me?" 

"Do you have to know everything?" 

"You know I do." 

"But it's more fun if you don't know." 

Ianto laughed and dug in his heels to stop Jack, causing the older man to turn around and look at him questioningly. "Jack, it's the middle of the day and we're supposed to be working, not running around like lunatics in the boiling sun." 

"Well, it's a good thing that I know the boss and can put in a good word for us," Jack grinned and tugged at Ianto's hand. He had to laugh when Ianto rolled his eyes and put his free hand on his hip. 

"You told the others that we had to go investigate something. What exactly would that be?" Ianto couldn't really keep the grin from his face, he had to be honest with himself, he enjoyed every second with Jack and especially times like this when they behaved like teenagers. So he didn't protest when Jack stepped closer and wrapped his arms around him to lift him a few inches from the ground. "You know, carrying me won't stop my questions." 

"Will you just chill?" Jack swirled them around and had Ianto chuckling in no time. 

"How old are you, Jack? You behave like a twelve year old." But Ianto didn't mind, he slid his arms around Jack's neck and looked at the older man. A few months ago he would have blushed furiously and fought Jack to put him down again, but now he was completely okay with showing their love in public. Why should he hold back, when every hetero couple was allowed to express their feelings with everyone watching? He bent down and pressed a sloppy kiss to Jack's lips which resulted in the other man putting him down and pulling him in a deep kiss with full tongue action which left them breathless. 

Both men sported a silly grin when they parted and Ianto licked his lips absently. "Well, if you put it that way, you're a lot older than a twelve years old." 

Jack chuckled and grabbed Ianto's hand again to drag him along. "Come on, I just wanted to buy you some ice cream, but now we don't have that much time anymore. I told the others we would be back in half an hour." 

Ianto laughed and let himself be pulled around the corner of the Millennium Centre to the ice cafe. 

They were both unaware of the figure that watched them from the shadows. 

\---oooOOooo--- 

Oh, how I hate him. There he is, being happy and laughing and kissing his boy. I can't believe how carefree he is after destroying everything, everyone I love. He doesn't deserve to be happy like this and I will see to it that he won't be any longer. I have watched him for quite some time now. I know about his boy, Ianto Jones is his name. It's impressive how much one can learn by just watching. 

It took me a few months to get from desperation to hatred but I'm here now and I will take revenge. I've sworn to myself I would take my time, learn everything there is before I make my move and as much as I want to do this all by myself, I know I need help. And I've found it. It's amazing how enough money can solve a lot of problems. And apart from that I'm not the only one that is pissed off by Torchwood. They behave like they own this city, especially Harkness. He lumbers through this city and pretends to be the impeccable hero but leaves dead bodies in his wake all over. I've seen it so many times. He pretends to help, to save, but he does nothing, he lets them suffer and die. I get even angrier when thinking about it, I can feel the hatred running through my veins, my blood is on fire, every fibre of my being wants to take revenge, wants to avenge the ones I loved. Still love so much. I have to bite my lip hard to not shout out my hatred to the world. 

Soon. 

I have planned everything. A grin splits my face by the thought of the destruction of Harkness' life. He will learn how it feels like to lose someone he loves and I will start with the boy. 

It's almost time now. 

I know that they have a secret base somewhere around here, I know that the tourist office down by the bay is the entry to that base. I've sent one of my men to get that information. The boy was there and showed him to the best spots in Cardiff on a map. I suppress a chuckle. He was so blind, so oblivious to the fact that my man only took a good look around the office. And it was worth the risk, he found a secret door and when the boy went to fetch more brochures he even found the button to open the door. For a secret organisation they're not that secretive. 

I have to smile again. And from what I've observed the tourist office is not the only way in or out of their complex. There has to be some sort of entry at the water tower, I've seen Harkness appear out of nothing before. But that's not important, I only need one way in. 

There is five of them, five people who make up Torchwood. Five people who pretend to be world's saviours. Oh, I know better. They don't save, they destroy. All of them. That Japanese woman and the one with the gap between her teeth, she actually was a police woman before joining Torchwood. Like I said, I've learnt a lot. 

Oh they acted so understanding, so supportive, but they did nothing to stop Harkness they are as guilty as he is. And then there's that doctor, I wonder how he can call himself a doctor when all he does is take life instead of saving it. I'm not sure how the boy fits into this, maybe he is only the office shag, but nonetheless they will all get their fair share when I start. They will be the steps on my way to Harkness, first he will see them suffer, then he will die. 

I'm taking a step back when I see Harkness return with the boy, they're licking at their ice cream, enjoying the sun and their lives. But not for long now, not when I will start. I watch them walk across the Plass, they are holding hands, stopping every few steps to share a kiss. I feel sick, the bile is rising in my throat and I have to calm myself down to keep myself from vomiting. 

I stay at my hide out for the rest of the day, watching the people walk over the Plass, tourists taking their pictures in front of the water tower. The more I watch them the more I notice they always avoid one spot in front of it, one spot no one sets foot on. I wonder why that is, but I know it has something to do with Torchwood, with Harkness appearing out of nowhere. Since I've started to watch them, I've seen some pretty unusual things, I couldn't believe my eyes at first, but it only fuelled my anger. All these creatures. What gives them the right to let those things run free in the city? 

And some of the technology they use is not human engineered, can't be human engineered. I've even found something myself. I pull the small egg shaped device from my pocket. It's deactivated at the moment, but I know it emits a low electromagnetic field when I turn it on. Well, that's what I found out about it, but more importantly, it seems to alert Torchwood, because every time I activated it, the man on watch by the Plass, registers activity. Sometimes all of them, sometimes only a few would get into their car and drive to the location where I activated the gismo. 

I smile. And this will be my chance to get to the boy. 

I gently trace the lines of the pattern engraved in the small device. Tomorrow. 

I look up, when I hear laughter. I know this voice by now, I hate the sound of it. Team Torchwood walks across the Plass, laughing. The doctor has linked arms with the Japanese and the police woman, Harkness has his arms around the boy's waist. They make their way to the pub like every other night. I've watched them often through the window. I even once sat down at the table next to them, they didn't recognize me. 

It's useless to go to the tourist office now, it's always locked when they’re not in. So I put the device back in my pocket and pull the hood of my jacket over my head. I leave my hiding place, carefully avoiding any CCTV cameras. Time to go home and rest. 

Tomorrow will be the day. 

\---oooOOooo--- 

They were talking about films on their way to the pub. The day had been uneventful and they used the time to catch up with their paperwork, leaving them rather itchy from sitting around all day. 

"Jack, I can't believe you've never seen ‘Bill & Ted's Excellent Adventures’. I mean two guys travelling through time in a phone box. Isn't that what the Doctor always does?" Owen chuckled and linked his arms with the two girls, who were giggling. 

Jack laughed and wrapped one arm around Ianto's waist. "No, I've never seen it, but it sounds like fun. Maybe I should invite the Doctor to a private screening." 

"Hey!" Ianto poked his lover in the ribs and received a brilliant smile in return. 

"And by private I mean, Torchwood employees are invited." 

"I'll bring the popcorn," Gwen joked. 

"And I’ll bring the soft drinks," Tosh piped up, joining in the fun. 

"I'll bring Ianto," said Jack and earned himself a slap from his lover and protests from the others. "Alright, alright, I'll bring the ice cream." 

Still laughing the group disappeared into the pub, the door falling shut behind them. 

\---oooOOooo--- 

I peer around the corner. Perfect. Everything is set, the junkies are paid and waiting for their cue. They know what to do and what will happen if they fail, so I'm confident everything will go according to plan. I push my hands in the pockets of my jacket and finally walk home. They will phone me when they've finished their task.


	2. Crash

"So, how far are the wedding plans?" Tosh asked with a small grin and sipped her drink. 

"Oh, don't start!" Gwen rolled her eyes and took a big gulp from her beer. "My mam still pokes her nose in everything, and she always disagrees, the wedding dress is too long, too short, too white, too whatever. The dresses for the bride’s maids are still a topic of doom and don't even get me started on the location, the food, the cards, the flowers... I want to make the decisions with Rhys but my mam always get her two cents in." 

"Seems to run in the family then," Ianto whispered in Jack's ear and both men started to chuckle, quickly kissing to disguise the laughter when Gwen shot them a look. 

Owen only smiled into his drink, having heard Ianto's statement. 

Tosh regretted having brought up Gwen's upcoming wedding after five minutes into a monologue about wedding dresses and flowers and catering companies and what to keep in mind. The Welsh woman ranted without drawing a breath and just started with the music choice for the reception when Owen decided to save everyone's nerves. Only Jack and Ianto weren't really listening as they were engrossed in themselves. Owen really didn't want to know what Jack's hand was doing to the young man under the table. 

"So, Tosh. Did you find anything about that weird signal we detected a few times now and always ended in us heading out and finding nothing?" Owen was pleased to see everyone's attention snapping back to normal and even Gwen stopped talking in mid sentence. 

Tosh gave her colleague a thankful smile and took another sip from her drink before she started to speak. "Not exactly. It's a really strong signal, not only emitting an EM-signature, but also sending a very unusual frequency. The waves almost look like brainwaves, maybe that's an indication for a sentient being. But I have no idea why it always stops when we get close to it." 

"It almost seems to be on purpose," Ianto nodded and tried to ignore Jack's hand which was still stroking gently over his thigh. 

"Bloody brilliant, an alien that obviously likes to play hide and seek with us. So how do we get to it?" 

"Tosh, is there any chance we can predict when the signal starts again? Is there some sort of pattern?" Jack had the deep frown on his forehead he always sported when there was something mysterious going on that refused to be solved. 

"No, as far I can see, there is no pattern to it. It starts in random intervals at random times. The only constant factor is that it dies every time when we are within a one mile radius. And when we get to the location where it last registered, there is nothing. And no trace of any kind where it had gone." 

"Ok, so we better do a full spectrum scan the next time it appears and work from there." Jack finished his drink and stood up. "Ok, enough for today. Let's celebrate the quiet day and go home early." He pulled Ianto up as well as soon as the man put his glass down on the table. "Have a nice evening." Saluting his team, he dragged Ianto to the door, not paying attention to the punk that had sat next to the door and slipped out into the night now. 

"You have a fun evening as well," Owen shouted after the departing couple and received a murdering glance from Ianto and giggles from the girls. 

Ianto stepped out first and looked up into the still dimly lit sky while Jack was putting his coat on and waved goodbye to the team. So neither of them saw the punk and another guy coming at Ianto in full speed. 

When Jack turned around he could only shout a "Watch out!" at his lover but it was already too late. The punk crashed full force into Ianto sending them tumbling to the ground. The other guy, seemingly trying to stop his skateboard in time but failing, banged into the two men already on the ground, tumbled over them and came to a rolling stop on the pavement. Jack saw that all happen in slow motion, his outstretched hand uselessly hanging in the air, watching in horror as Ianto's head met the ground with a sickening thud and both men finally came to a stop. That was the moment when the sounds reached his ears again and Jack snapped into action, he kicked the door to the pub open, shouted for Owen and was kneeling next to Ianto a moment later. 

Owen burst through the door shortly after, closely followed by Tosh and Gwen. The three of them assessed the situation quickly and Owen knelt down next to Ianto, while Gwen and Tosh attended to the boys who were already scrambling to their feet again, apologizing profusely. The women led the two boys a few feet away and sat them down on the pavement again, both checking for injuries. 

"Seems you were lucky," Gwen said when she could only find some minor abrasions and a few bruises. "Good thing you wore those helmets." When she was satisfied the boys were ok, she turned her attention to Owen and Jack and watched worried when Ianto didn't move. 

Owen felt carefully for a pulse and was relieved when he found it strong and regular. A quick check of Ianto's torso and neck revealed no broken bones and there was no blood. 

"His head hit the ground really hard," Jack offered, obviously worried sick, clasping one of Ianto's hands in his. 

Owen nodded and pulled a light pen from his pocket to shine into Ianto's eyes. "His pupils are a bit sluggish, it's probably a concussion. To be on the safe side, we should put him under a scanner to rule out any skull fractures." 

"Can we move him?" 

"Shall we call an ambulance?" A guy suddenly asked and Jack saw that half of the people from the pub had filtered out on the street to watch the spectacle going on. 

"I'll go get the SUV," Gwen offered and sprinted in the direction of the Hub after a nod from Jack. 

Jack looked at the guy again. "No thanks, we can handle it. If you could just go back in and give us some room." 

"Someone should call the police!" Another voice piped up. 

"There is no need, we're Torchwood, everything is under control. If you would just go back inside and let us work." Jack felt the anger rise and fought it down again. These people didn't have anything to do with their situation. He gave them a stern look and was relieved when they slowly turned back into the pub again. He didn't even react when he heard a muttered "Bloody Torchwood." 

When the two boys heard the word 'Torchwood' they went even paler than before and started apologizing again. Jack looked at the two, obviously frightened kids. They couldn't be older than 17 or 18. 

"Are you injured?" When both of them shook their heads furiously, Jack gazed at Toshiko who shrugged. He turned his attention back to the boys who watched him anxiously. "Look, it was an accident. If you're sure you're ok, you better go home now." Jack had to smile when the kids scrambled to their feet and grabbed their skateboards, again apologizing and practically running from the scene. 

"Why did you let them go?" Tosh asked puzzled. 

"Why shouldn't I? It was an accident and I don't have the nerve to deal with two frightened kids now." Jack looked down at the still unconscious Ianto and felt something ripping in his heart. 

Owen saw the devastated look on his Captain's face. "He will be okay, pulse and breathing are strong and there is no indication of any major damage. I just want to make sure with the scan. He will be up and about in no time, probably feeling sick for a few days because of the concussion, but otherwise he will be the same wise-cracking tea-boy." Owen patted Jack on the arm and gave him a reassuring look. He had prodded Ianto for any indications of severe injuries, but hadn't found one, so he was pretty sure of himself that he was telling the truth. 

Gwen chose that moment to steer the SUV around the corner and park next to them. Tosh and Owen immediately went to the trunk and got the stretcher out. Carefully they lifted Ianto on it and pushed it onto the backseat. 

On a wink from Owen, Tosh was grabbing Jack's arm. "Come on. Let's walk back to the Hub. Owen needs the room to look after Ianto." She pulled the older man gently with her, noticing the longing glance Jack shot over his shoulder when Gwen started the SUV again and pulled slowly away. "He will be fine, Owen will take care of him." 

"I know." Jack's voice was very quiet and Tosh noticed not for the first time how strong his feelings towards Ianto must be.


	3. Relief

They walked the short distance to the Hub in silence and Jack pulled her onto the invisible lift when they passed the water tower, taking the short cut. 

The lift touched down the moment Owen and Gwen rolled Ianto in on a gurney. Together they lifted the stretcher from the gurney and carried their colleague into the medical bay where Owen immediately got busy with his scanners, while the rest watched from the stairs. 

Each gave a relieved sigh when Ianto started moving again and gave an undignified groan, squeezing his eyes shut against the penlight Owen attempted to shine in his eyes again. 

"Hey, mate, good to have you back, I was worrying about my coffee supply a little." Owen grinned and switched his penlight off to help Ianto into a sitting position. Jack was immediately at his side to support his lover and hold him close. 

"What happened?" Muttering, Ianto pressed a hand against his forehead to keep his brain inside which threatened to explode. 

"You were run over by two kids on skateboards, remember?" Jack spoke in a low voice and stroked soothing circles on his lover's back. "You gave me quite the scare." 

"Sorry. Two kids on skateboards? I remember stepping out of the pub and then everything gets fuzzy. But for what it's worth, I feel like I was run over by a truck." 

"Ok, now that you're awake you can tell me were it hurts and if you could please lose the shirt, I need to examine your torso." Owen positioned himself in front of Ianto and ignored the returned giggles of the girls and Jack's dirty look. 

Ianto raised his eyebrow and looked at Owen before he had processed the meaning behind Owen's statement. "Oh. Uhm..." Giving Jack a meaningful glance he was relieved when his lover shooed the two girls out of the medical bay and then helped him out of his suit jacket and shirt, wincing when the movement put a strain on a bruised rib. 

Owen eyed his colleague appraisingly. "Well, seems you have a couple of nice bruises which will blossom in a few very interesting colours over the next couple of days." He stepped forward and prodded carefully around an already blue area on Ianto's right side. 

"Ouch." Wincing, the younger man batted the doctor's hand away. "I don't think there's anything broken." 

"So, what about your head? Any visual problems?" 

"Everything’s a bit foggy and my brain tries to get out of my head and I bet I will get dizzy if I attempt to stand up," Ianto replied honestly. 

"Ok, I'll give you a painkiller and a mild sedative, best to sleep through the worst of it. And as of now you're restricted to light duty. I would send you home to do nothing, but I know you wouldn't listen and besides, I need the coffee." Owen grinned and gave Ianto two pills and a glass of water. "The sedative will kick in quickly, so you better let Jack take you down his hole." Bathing in the murderous look Ianto gave him, Owen held his hands up defensively. "I want you to stay in the Hub so I have you in my sight if something happens." 

Jack just grinned and helped Ianto to hop down from the table only to catch his swaying lover again. "Easy there, Yan." 

Ianto squeezed his eyes shut and clung to the older man, happy for the support. His head was pounding and the light cut like daggers into his eyes. Slowly he started to put one foot before the other, letting Jack lead him to the hatch in the Captain's office. 

"You will feel much better tomorrow, just have a good night’s sleep," Owen promised when he watched the two men making their way out of the medical bay. "I will stay here and do some overdue analysis in the hothouse, just call me." 

Jack nodded his thanks to Owen and reminded the girls of their free evening and sent them home. When they reached the hatch, Jack lowered Ianto down to sit on the edge, his legs dangling in the hole. The young man was already half asleep and barely keeping himself upright, so Jack hurried to climb down the ladder to help Ianto down as well. He was glad they hadn't bothered to put the younger man's shirt back on so Jack pushed him gently down onto the bed and then made quick work of Ianto's pants before he tucked him under the duvet. 

Smiling, Jack squatted down next to the bed and combed his fingers gently through his lover's dark hair, brushing a strand from his face. Ianto was fast asleep now and his features were completely relaxed, giving him this incredibly innocent look Jack always missed when he watched Ianto go through the daily business. 

It frightened him how much this small incident had affected him. Jack had tried to ignore the fact how deep the young man had infiltrated his mind and heart, but he knew when it was time to say the final goodbye it would tear him apart. Ianto was the first person he had really allowed to get close, the first person who he had run from and returned to and would never leave again. Jack had run from his other lover's because he was afraid to commit himself, he was afraid to watch them die, afraid to explain why he didn't age while they would get old. But Ianto knew all his secrets, well, maybe not all, but a lot of them. And it terrified Jack how easily the Welsh boy had managed to steal his heart and keep it. 

Bending down, Jack gave Ianto a kiss on his forehead before he made his way back up the ladder. As sleeping was out of the question now, he resigned to catch up with his paperwork and push any thoughts about losing Ianto out of his mind. 

* 

Jack had checked a few times on Ianto, but the younger man was fast asleep and hadn't even moved so much as an inch. Owen had found his way to the couch behind Tosh's work station sometime in the middle of the night and the rift had stayed blissfully calm. It was early morning when Jack yawned and stretched and made his way to the coffee machine to attempt getting a decent coffee out of it. He was silently cursing the damn thing and resisted the urge to kick it, when two arms slid around his waist from behind and made him jump. 

"Whoa, Ianto!" 

"Can I help you with the coffee machine, sir?" The young man chuckled. 

"You should be in bed." 

"I feel a lot better, my head doesn't feel like exploding any second and I'm not dizzy anymore. So I think I can manage to operate the coffee maker so you will get your fix." Smiling, Ianto released the older man and made quick work of the machine, presenting Jack with a steaming mug of coffee only minutes later. 

"You are a god, you know that?" Inhaling the rich aroma of the coffee, Jack took a sip and closed his eyes, a big smile showing itself on his face. 

"Yes, I've been told that before," Ianto grinned and prepared a coffee for himself and Owen and made his way back to the main area of the Hub, placing a mug on the table next to the couch, counting inwardly to three. 

Owen's eyes fluttered open on the mark, sniffing for the coffee. Ianto grinned and sat down at Tosh's station, looking through the log file from the rift monitor, while the doctor scrambled into a sitting position, clasping the hot mug with both hands. 

"I see you feel better today?" 

Ianto closed the log file, satisfied they didn't miss anything important and turned the chair around, taking another sip of his coffee. "Yes, much better." 

"Headache?" 

"Just a little." 

"Good. However, you are not cleared for field work for at least two days and I want you to take it easy in the Hub as well. Let Jack do all the work for once." 

"Oi!" Having heard Owen's last statement, Jack climbed up the few stairs to the main area of the Hub and gifted the doctor with a fierce glare. 

Ianto chuckled, but he had to agree with Owen. He felt much better, but he wasn't up for chasing Weevils. 

The girls chose that moment to enter the Hub and both were instantly fussing about Ianto, who patiently told for the third time that he was much better, thank you and no he wouldn't go out into the field within the next few days and yes, he would make Jack do all the work, which earned him a scowl from his lover. When the girls were satisfied, Ianto cleared Tosh's station and went to work his coffee magic for them. 

Jack retreated slowly into his office, watching his team with a content feeling. They had really become a family.


	4. Start

The beeping of my alarm wakes me up. I open my eyes and stare at the ceiling of my bedroom and a smile creeps on my face. Today his the first day of Harkness' way to hell. 

I decide to have a shower before breakfast, there is lots of time. The boys phoned yesterday and reported what happened, they were really frightened about the guy being someone from Torchwood. I told them to forget about it and to get the hell out of Cardiff before I would come after them. I don't think they will be a problem anymore. 

Whistling happily when I prepare my breakfast, I can't suppress a smile. The boys had done well, Harkness' lover was still unconscious when they had left the scene, so there was no way he will go out on a mission today. A check-in with my guy at the Plass told me they haven't even left their base. 

9am. Time to leave, I haven't felt this good in a long time. 

While I drive to pick up one of my guys, I go through my plan again. I have thought of everything, every little detail is clear in my mind, every possibility of what could go wrong is mapped out and linked with a solution. There will be no mistakes. 

Frank and Bobby are already waiting for me. Of course these are not their real names, but we agreed on using false identities, it's just safer that way. They address me as "Boss" and I have to say, I really like the sound of that. 

Frank, already in his gear, climbs into the car, while I wave Bobby over to give him the small alien device. I instruct him of which buttons to press and when to deactivate it again. He nods his understanding and sets off to his position. I feel confident, I've chosen my men carefully. 

Setting the car into motion again, we make our way to the Plass. I know where to park to be outside of any CCTV cameras. Sam joins us and we gear up, Frank found us some military clothing and black hockey masks, we will be completely covered. No chance of being identified. I check my watch, the tension is slowly setting in. 10:13am. We decided on a random time, Bobby will activate the device at 10:22am. Time to re-check everything, the masks are fitting properly and are well disguised by the hoods of our coats. The long coats are also hiding the weapons we’re carrying. No one will notice anything on our way to the fake tourist office. 

Another glimpse at the time, it’s 10:19am. I nod towards my men and receive a nod in return. The tension is almost palpable now. 

10:22am. 

It normally takes them up to five minutes to leave in their black car and today is not any different. I breathe in deeply before opening the door and then we make our way to the tourist office. No one pays us any attention, it's early morning and a workday, so there're not many people around. We reach the tourist office and I try the door. 

It's open. As planned there is still someone in their base. 

\---oooOOooo--- 

"Jack, it's the signal again," Tosh called into Jack's office. A moment later the team was gathering around her and watching the monitors. 

"Ok, record this. We are heading out again. Take the heavy equipment this time; I want to know what's playing games with us." Jack frowned at the monitor, his hands on his hips. 

Tosh nodded and took off with Gwen and Owen in tow to collect the necessary stuff and load it into the SUV. 

Jack was turning around to talk to Ianto, but he found his lover already holding the coat out for him. 

"I monitor from here," the younger man said and smiled when Jack presented him with a dazzling smile. 

"We'll be back soon. Behave." 

"I'll do my best, sir." 

After watching his team mates leave the Hub, Ianto made his way around their stations to collect discarded mugs and the usual rubbish. 

\---oooOOooo--- 

I look around in the little office, I've never been in here before. Everything is very neatly organized and appears to be a real tourist information centre, but I know better. I motion for Sam to open the door and he goes behind the counter and pushes the button. A part of the wall swings open. I'm impressed he had actually found it, it had looked like a compact wall to me. But so much for secrecy. 

We ready our weapons and make our way through the door, a long corridor awaits us with an elevator and stairs at the end. I choose the stairs, it's going down for quite a bit until we reach a big cog shaped door. This has to be it. When I peer through the window I see the boy walking through what looks like a mix of an old factory and a dock. A satisfied smile spreads over my face, signalling my men to be ready, I turn the key in the lock at the wall, obviously the mechanism to open the door. There is an alarm going off and the door rolls slowly to the side, I curse silently, but there is no time to back down now. I usher my men through the door and get rewarded with a shocked expression on the boy’s face.


	5. Mark One

Ianto heard the alarms going off and the cog door rolled to the side. He was just turning around to ask if the team had forgotten something, when three men entered the Hub. His first reflex was to reach for his weapon, but he hadn't put his holster on today. His heart was racing now and he was considering various possibilities in one second, but when he wanted to reach for his earpiece the first of the men was in front of him, pointing the muzzle of an MP in his face. 

"Who are you?" 

Ianto couldn't react fast enough to avoid the weapon being smashed into his belly, coughing he collapsed to the ground, pressing his hands to his stomach. He felt his headset being ripped away and a moment later he was dragged to his feet again. His stomach was cramping and his headache had returned in full force. 

Hanging between the two men, he watched how the third slowly approached him. Noticing the hockey masks, Ianto felt the fear rising. He was used to reading a person from their expressions, but the black plastic disguised everything. 

He ignored his pain and stared the intruder stubbornly into the hidden eyes, he wouldn't show his fear. 

"Who are you? What do you..." 

This time he was backhanded and effectively silenced. The sudden movement of his head left him dizzy and he had the feeling his skull would crack any second now, pushed open by his throbbing brain. The intruders, however, didn't leave him time to recover but dragged him through the Hub towards Jack's office. Ianto tried to fight, but a punch to his already bruised ribs left him hanging and gasping for air. He was forced down on a chair, his arms brutally dragged behind his back and secured to the backrest with duct tape. His legs received a similar treatment and were tied to the legs of the chair, leaving him effectively pinned. 

Ianto's heart was racing, he tasted blood from his split lip, his whole body ached, his arms were twisted painfully behind his back, the newly punched bruised rib screamed and his head was throbbing so hard he was feeling sick again. He forced himself to lift his head and look at the man who was apparently in charge here. 

It was almost impossible to focus, his vision was blurred and Ianto had to fight not to throw up. The man was standing right in front of him now, looking down. Ianto could feel his gaze on him and pulled unconsciously on his hands. He was painstakingly aware of his own helplessness, but he tried to convince himself that he would be already dead if they had wanted to kill him. Knowing better by now to ask questions, he kept his mouth shut and stared his opponent stubbornly in the eyes, suddenly startled and massively confused when the man spoke. 

"You think you're the top of the heap, don't you?" 

"What?" 

"Shut up!" 

Another blow to Ianto's face snapped his head around and he had to clench his teeth to suppress a moan. Squeezing his eyes, he felt the right one already swelling shut. A gloved hand gripped his chin and forced his head back up, blood trickled down his cheek from a gash on his eyebrow and the world was dancing in front of him, but he forced himself to open his left eye and look defensively at his tormentor, keeping his face still in check. 

"Are you making him happy?" 

Ianto couldn't stop the surprised expression. What the hell was going on here, who were these people? 

"Are you here to please Jack - fucking - Harkness? Are you his toy? His pet?" 

The young Welsh man couldn't believe what he was hearing. 

"Are you his little bitch?" Another blow to the face followed. 

Not able to suppress the moan this time, Ianto felt like laughing hysterically. But the next comment shook him to the bone and let his blood run cold. 

"Fucking the great Jack Harkness, destroyer of lives... He destroyed mine, now I'm going to destroy his." 

Another blow snapped his head around again before he felt hands at his shirt, tearing the fabric apart, exposing his chest. Ianto was seriously terrified now, he dragged in vain at his ties and had to use all his willpower not to tremble when a blade was flashed before his face. One of the men loosened his tie only to pull it up and use it as a gag, making Ianto groan, when the tie was tightened around his already bruised jaw. 

The man in front of him reached out and gently stroked over Ianto's head, then suddenly gripping him by the hair, he yanked his head back. Coming closer, he traced the blade over Ianto's cheek, making the young man shiver in fear. 

"Now listen, boy, this is just the beginning. Take this as a warning." The man pulled the knife away, cutting Ianto's face in the process before delivering another blow. 

The last blow to his face made Ianto see stars and he couldn't repress the muffled scream when the man carved a cross in his chest. 

"I mark my first win." 

Stepping back, the man nodded to his two henchmen, who happily stepped up to the plate and started raining down blow after blow on the defenceless man. 

Ianto couldn't separate the blows anymore, his whole body was screaming in pain and he welcomed the darkness and safety of unconsciousness that lurked at the edge of his mind. He didn't realize when the beating stopped and the intruders left the Hub, he was just thankful when the blackness engulfed him and he slipped blissfully into the nothing behind.


	6. Suspicion

It was only ten minutes later, when the cog door rolled open again and the team strolled back into the Hub, Owen scolding about yet another wild goose chase. 

"Oh, will you stop bickering?" Gwen asked exasperated. 

"Hey, you weren't the one who had to climb down in that filthy hole to check out what Tosh's scan had showed." 

"You're such a baby, Owen." 

"Jack, Gwen just volunteered for the next time someone has to crawl through some stinky caves." 

"Oi!" 

Jack smiled when he made his way up to his office, exchanging amused looks with Tosh. 

"I need coffee, where's the tea-boy?" 

"Owen, I told you to stop calling him that," Jack pointed a finger at his doctor before turning around and stepping in his office. He stopped dead at the threshold. 

"Ianto?" Panic, fear, anger, desperation, every emotion rushed through him in that moment, before he darted to his lover. "Owen, get in here now!" He barked and knelt down next to his bruised and battered lover, not daring to touch him in fear of hurting him even more. 

"What's up? I just wanted to - oh fuck!" Owen rushed to Ianto, pressing his finger gently to the younger man's neck, searching desperately for a pulse, relieved when he felt it. Faint but steady. 

Gwen and Tosh appeared in the doorway, both gasping horrified by the look of their bleeding friend. 

Jack searched Owen's face for the answer he desperately needed. He needed Ianto to be alive. His panic threatened to suffocate him, but he needed to stay calm. 

"Intruder alarm! Gwen, Tosh!" 

Both women pulled their guns in one smooth movement and turned around, scanning the Hub for any sign of the monsters who did this to Ianto. Tosh ran to her station and pulled up the Hub CCTV, while Gwen covered her, still scanning their surroundings. 

"They're gone," Tosh announced loudly. "Approximately ten minutes ago." 

Gwen lowered her gun and looked at Tosh. If they had just been back a little earlier... 

\---oooOOooo--- 

Jack had carefully freed Ianto's arms and legs while Owen made a preliminary examination. He just relieved his lover from the gag when Owen spoke up. 

"Listen, Jack, we need to get him to the medical bay." 

Jack nodded and gently slipped his arms around Ianto's back and under his legs and lifted him up. Owen rose as well, supporting Ianto's head, cautiously leaning it against Jack's shoulder. Grabbing his medical pack, he quickly made his way to the medical bay, clearing the table from the specimens he was working on. Gwen and Tosh were at his side instantly, helping to clean the table before Jack laid the limp figure in his arms down on it. Everyone took a step back to leave Owen some room to work, watching anxiously when the doctor swept the scanner over the bruised body. 

Jack's feelings were in uproar, this was the second time in under 24 hours that Ianto was lying unconsciously in the med bay, this time seriously injured. The sight of the slim body, covered in blood and bruises was enough to cut Jack's heart in two and he swore to himself he would find the person who did that to his lover. 

He was torn from his thoughts when Owen gave a relieved sigh and muttered under his breath. 

"You are one lucky sod, Ianto Jones." Owen turned and looked at the rest of the team. "I know he looks awful and in fact he has some severe bruises and a cracked rib, but no internal bleedings. Combined with the concussion he already has he will feel extremely miserable when he wakes up and he will take time to heal and get back on his feet, but other than that, he was bloody lucky." 

Jack felt a stone lifted from his heart and stepped closer to Ianto when Owen started to clean the blood from his chest. 

"Bloody hell...." Owen had to swallow hard when he revealed the carved in cross on Ianto's chest. 

The anger replaced the fear Jack had been feeling and was burning hot in his veins, while a cold hand gripped his heart when he saw his lover's skin being mutilated like that. "What the hell is going on here, who did that?" Clasping Ianto's hand in his, Jack used it as an anchor to not crumble to the ground or blindly run out of the Hub to find and kill whoever was responsible for hurting his beautiful lover. 

Tosh gasped in horror, not able to comprehend how someone was capable of doing such things. She felt utterly helpless, but then she remembered how Ianto had saved her during their ‘adventure’ in the countryside. She owed him. Clenching her fists, a grim expression spread across her face. Turning around, she walked back up the stairs, determined to find out who had dared to hurt her friend. 

Gwen watched Tosh leave the room and after a look at the three men, she followed her, knowing the small woman would be on a mission to get to the bottom of this. 

Gently wiping the remaining blood from Ianto's body, Owen started to apply a dressing to the chest wound. It wasn't that deep to require stitching, so he just cleaned the cuts and pulled them together with clamp plasters before covering the wound. Doing the same with the gash on Ianto's eyebrow and the cut on his cheek, he looked up at Jack when he was finished. 

"He will be OK." 

Jack only nodded, never lifting his gaze, one hand carding gently through Ianto's hair, the other firmly clasping his lover's hand. 

Owen sighed and pulled off his gloves, putting a comforting hand on Jack's arm. 

"He will be fine. Ianto's a tough lad." 

Sensing, Jack needed a moment alone with his lover, Owen left the med bay in search for Tosh and Gwen. They needed to find the bastards who did this.


	7. Suspicions

Jack squeezed his eyes shut and listened to Owen leaving. He hadn't felt this helpless since he had lost his brother over 150 years ago. Jack had carefully avoided getting too close to someone for fear of losing them. He never wanted to experience these feelings again, but then Ianto Jones crossed his path. Jack smiled ruefully. He hadn't stood a chance, the young man was everything to him, hell he even declined to travel with the Doctor to be with him. Jack took a deep breath; he needed to be strong for Ianto and he needed to find the people who did this. Bending down, he brushed a kiss to Ianto's forehead. 

"I love you, Yan. And I will find and kill whoever did this. No one will ever hurt you again," he whispered in his lover's ear, before standing upright again and wiping angrily the tears from his face. 

"Jack!" Tosh’s voice echoed through the silent med bay. 

Smiling down at Ianto, he gave the young man another soft kiss before he forced himself to turn around and see what Toshiko wanted to show him. 

He found his team gathered around Tosh's workstation and saw the CCTV images on the screen. "Show me." 

"There is no need for you to watch every...." 

"Tosh, show me!" 

The Japanese woman cringed slightly at the harsh tone but pressed a few keys on her keyboard and the screens showed Ianto walking through the Hub, turning around, when the alarm from the cog door went up. Jack clenched his fists, when he watched how the three men attacked his lover and dragged him through the complex. He could see Ianto was in pain but the young man was still fighting and defying his tormenters. Jack felt sick by watching his lover suffer but what was said shook him to the bone. This was all his fault. Again a ghost from his past had come back to haunt him and had swallowed Ianto in the process. Jack felt his knees quiver and he had to grab the backrest of Tosh's chair to steady himself. 

Gwen looked at him. "Jack, this is not your fault." 

"How can it not be my fault, you heard him. I destroyed his life!" 

Normally Jack would have snapped saying this, but his voice was unsteady and almost broken and that frightened Gwen more than anything else. 

"Listen, Jack, this isn't your fault. You only do your job, which is saving this world and the people in it. We all know that it doesn't go smoothly all the time and there are casualties. But as much as I hate to say this, we have to look at the greater good here. We do what we have to do, you do what you have to do and there will be losses. And I hate it. But we try to keep those losses to a minimum and to help those left behind. There isn't much we can do besides that." 

Jack appreciated what Gwen was saying, but he knew she wasn't entirely correct. He had done some things in the past, before he became head of Torchwood 3, things he wasn't proud of. And he feared one of the people he hurt then was coming back to him now. 

"Well, it certainly narrows it down to only people Jack had pissed of," Owen stated dryly. 

"Owen!" Tosh glared at her colleague. 

"No, he's right. There are too many. I didn't recognize the voice of that bastard, it sounded somehow distorted, is there something wrong with the system?" 

"No, he used a voice modulator." 

Everyone turned around, when they heard Ianto's voice. Jack was at his side in an instant, sliding his arm around the slim frame of his lover. 

"You should be in bed." 

"And you should know that this is not your fault, Jack." Ianto looked at his lover with his undamaged eye, his right arm pressed against his belly, slightly swaying and obviously in pain. 

"Yan...." 

"No, Jack, I need you to know that, fuck, I need you to believe it! We..." A groan ended his outburst and Ianto staggered only to be caught by Jack, who didn't really know where to touch his lover without causing him even more pain. 

"At least sit down on the couch," Jack begged and pushed Ianto softly in the direction of the sofa. 

Ianto wasn't to argue with that, climbing up the stairs from the med bay had taken its toll and he wanted nothing more than to lie down and be safely engulfed in Jack's arms. So he was only too happy to sit down and lean against Jack, taking shallow breaths to avoid putting too much strain on his ribs. His head was spinning again and he had a feeling the throbbing headache wouldn't go away either. Just a moment after sitting down a glass of water appeared before him and when he lifted his gaze he looked at Tosh who smiled at him. He managed half a smile before his split lip reminded him not to do that yet. 

"Here, mate, take these. They should minimize the pain." Owen held two pills under his nose and Ianto took them gratefully. "And then I want you to lie down again! Jack is right, you should be in bed." 

"Believe me, there is nowhere I'd rather be now." 

"I'll take him home," Jack instantly offered. 

"I'm not sure that's such a good idea," Tosh piped up and looked apologetically at Ianto. "I’ve been thinking. The guy said this was only the beginning and Ianto was his first...win.” She cringed visibly by saying that word. “This looks like a targeted attack. I mean how were they to know that Ianto was alone? How did they get inside in the first place?" 

The others looked at the Japanese woman. Suddenly something dawned on Owen. 

"That signal we were tracking...." 

"It was a decoy," Jack finished the thought and nodded. 

"But how did they know Ianto would be alone in the Hub?" Gwen asked. 

Tosh and Jack looked at each other. "The accident!" They both said in unison. 

"Looks like it wasn't that accidental after all." Jack was ready to kick himself. "Seems you were right, Tosh. I shouldn't have let the boys go." 

"Great so I was run over for a reason, I feel so much better now," Ianto remarked dryly. The painkillers were taking effect, his head was already clearer and the dissipating fog and pain made room for anger. He was royally pissed off. 

"But how did they get in?" Gwen was in asking mode, so it seemed. 

Tosh turned back to her console and typed in a few commands, bringing up the CCTV from the tourist office. "Seems they knew exactly what to do," she said and pointed at the screen. They watched the three men enter and one of them going straight for the button to open the secret door. 

"It looks like someone had done their homework," Jack stated. "OK, so this is obviously not an offhanded coup. We've probably been watched for several weeks, which makes this a serious enemy. They've already successfully targeted Ianto, I don't want this to happen again. No one is going anywhere alone as of now, not in the Hub, not out there, not to your flats. Gwen, I'm not sure you should be alone with Rhys either, I..." 

"I'm not leaving him alone! If they've watched us, they know about him, Jack. I need to go home to him, we will be OK. Tosh and Owen can drop me off." 

Jack wasn't happy at all with that, but one look at Gwen's stubborn face told him there was no point in arguing and he didn’t have the strength for a fight with her now. 

"Okay, but I want you to accompany her to the door and make sure everything is fine," Jack was addressing Tosh and Owen. "And you two are staying together as well. You can stay in the Hub if..." 

"We'll stay at Owen's," Tosh piped up, turning bright red the next second and smiling uncomfortably. "He has a large TV," she added defensively, when she saw the beginning of a smile on Jack's face. 

Ianto cracked half a smile as well. He knew Tosh was very fond of Owen, she had told him so much and he was happy for her to spend some time in private with the doctor. He just wished for other circumstances. 

"OK, I want you to have your phones on at all times and keep it close by. Check you weapons and have them close by as well. Gwen, either Tosh and Owen or Ianto and me are picking you up tomorrow, you are not going out alone and I want you to tell Rhys the same. Tosh, we need new security standards, it has to be impossible for non Torchwood people to enter the Hub. Owen, is there anything I need to take care of with Ianto?" 

Ianto wanted to interrupt and say that he was actually sitting there, but Jack was in commanding mode and it was better to let him sail with it. It was Jack's way of coping with a situation, his way of trying to keep control. So he watched the others nod their agreement to the orders and Owen fetched a few more pills for him, telling Jack to see to it that Ianto rested, no stress. Ianto rolled his eyes at that, as if he was up for anything and Jack was hardly the never sated lover like people thought, but he said nothing. Everyone gathered their things and the girls hugged him carefully, telling him to get better soon. 

"Call me if there is any change in his condition," Owen told Jack, causing Ianto to repress another eye roll. They only wanted for him to get better, they were all worried. 

The team left together, Jack and Ianto taking the SUV, the others filing into Owen's car, and set of to their respective flats.


	8. Quiet

A few miles away, on the other side of the city a dozen monitors showed the interior of the Hub. 

I watch how the team leaves the base and smile. My first attack was a full success; the boy was marked and wouldn't forget any of this soon. Harkness had seemed genuinely upset about everything, blaming himself. Well, spot on, Captain, it is all your fault! 

I switch to another camera, their base seems to be huge and is located directly beneath the water tower. I can't believe no one knows about it. 

Rewinding the footage again to watch my favourite moments for a second time, I zoom in on Harkness’ horrified face, when he finds the boy, his pathetic tear streaked face when he sits with him and the best moment of all, the pure guilt, when he realizes it's all his fault. 

These are the moments I was planning for so long. I will destroy him piece by piece. This was just a warning, the boy may still live, but I was just beginning. 

I switch off the monitors and dwell on that little piece of technology that allows me to tap into their CCTV network, just a simple transmitter, which I threw under one of the desks in their base. They wouldn't find it and I'm sure no camera captured the moment when I dumped it there. 

I anticipated Harkness' move to keep his team close together now. But I can be patient, I'll wait for a few days, until the time is right and they're not expecting it anymore. 

Satisfied by the outcome of my first strike, I leave the small room with the technical equipment and go to the living room to watch some meaningless shows on TV to kill time. 

I need to call Dave and Stephan tomorrow to put them on alert. I don't think we will strike in the next few days, but they need to be ready. I will need all my men for the next part of my plan. 

Sprawling out on my sofa I switch the TV on, not really caring for the show that's on. I feel good, the adrenaline is still rushing through my veins and the feeling of power is overwhelming. The boy was terrified when he was at my mercy, I could see it in his eyes. The same expression as my.... No! I push the thoughts back in my mind, I spent enough time mourning, now it's time for revenge. 

My gaze drifts to the small gizmo on the table in front of me. I pick it up and turn it in my hand, my fingers tracing the engraved pattern for what feels like the millionth time. The urge to activate it is strong, but I fight it down, if I activate it now, they would find me and it's not time for that yet. 

\---oooOOooo--- 

The next couple of days went by in a rush. The whole team was on high alert, especially Jack who tried to keep everyone in his sight. And to top this, his overprotective behaviour towards Ianto was slowly driving the younger man mad. He had enjoyed the attention at first, not really complaining about being pampered as he felt awful. He had slept mostly through the first days in Jack's bunk, grateful for Owen's painkillers which silenced his throbbing brain. But after three days of rest, Ianto felt much better and tried to get back to work, however he hadn't counted on Jack being a clucking hen and he found himself wrapped in a blanket and unceremoniously pushed down onto the couch behind Tosh's station. 

"Jack, I feel better. Really, I..." 

"You stay were you are." 

"But..." 

"No buts." And with that, Jack had stomped off to his office, leaving Ianto gaping after him. 

"Jack is right you need to take it easy. You can't wave off what happened. I know you're a thick headed git, but even your head needs to heal after being thrown around." Owen had swivelled around on his chair and pointed his finger at Ianto. "And your broken rib will thank you for not crawling around in the archives." 

Ianto glared at Owen. Since when did the medic agree with Jack? 

But his attention was drawn off by a cup of tea that appeared in front of his face. When his eyes followed the arm up he looked in Toshiko's smiling face and couldn't help but smile back. He carefully took the offered cup and clasped his hands around the warm ceramic. 

"Thank you." 

"You're welcome." Tosh sat down beside him, folding her hands in her lap. "We are only worried about you." 

"I know." Ianto lowered his gaze and stared into his mug. He wasn't used to getting so much attention from the team. "And I appreciate it." 

"Let us take care of you for a change, okay?" Tosh stood up again and smiled down at him. "Just for this once, let us treat you as the pet of the family that you are." She carefully ruffled through his hair, ignoring his indignant "Oi!" and the hand that batted hers away. 

"Don't get used to it tea-boy," Owen scolded but the twinkle in his eyes told Ianto that he was as relieved that the young man was alright as the rest of the team. 

Smiling fondly, Ianto lifted the mug to his lips and inhaled the rich aroma of the tea before taking a careful sip. This family might be a bit dysfunctional, but it was his. He smiled up at Gwen, when she placed a plate with biscuits in front of him before walking into Jack's office, a stack of files in her other hand. They were working through all the possible suspects who could be responsible for the attack. So far they came up empty. 

\---oooOOooo--- 

Oh, how sweet of you, team Torchwood! Take care of the boy. I laugh humourlessly watching the video stream on my monitor. Shall they pamper him for now, I know the time is close when they can't do that anymore. 

Muting the volume of the video feed, I go back to eating my dinner, watching my own personal big brother house. Chuckling at my stupid joke, I lean back and flip a switch. Harkness’ hunched over figure appears on the screens, he is reading through files with the police woman, Gwen is her name, looking for me. But they’re looking in the wrong place.

Smiling I turn the volume back up, just in time to listen to their conversation and unbeknownst to them they give me the perfect opportunity for my next strike.

I finish my meal and grab the phone, time to inform my men.


	9. Dreams

It had become routine by now: Owen and Tosh taking Gwen home and spending the night at Owen's, Jack and Ianto spending the night at Ianto's. 

It had been six days since the attack and Owen had started to lower the dose of painkillers for Ianto, meaning he wasn't out cold for the night anymore. 

Jack had expected the nightmares and they came with full force in the first night without a sedative. Ianto was thrashing around wildly, fighting an invisible enemy and almost punched Jack before the older man managed to capture him in an embrace, holding Ianto flush to his chest and whispering soothing words. It broke his heart to hear his lover begging his tormentor to stop while tears were running down his face, soaking the dressing which still covered the almost healed cut on his cheek. Ianto would never show this much fear when he was awake, so when Jack held him through the nightmares, it was his only chance to see how much the attack had really affected the young man. Torchwood had been Ianto's safe place for some time now and it had been in that safe haven he had been attacked and almost been killed. And it hadn't been by aliens who tried to take over earth, no it had been by some guy who was pissed off at Jack and used Ianto to get to him. Jack buried his face in the younger man's hair and tightened the embrace as much as he dared considering Ianto's cracked rib. 

"I'm so sorry." He felt his tears wetting Ianto's hair now and cursed himself to be so weak. His tears helped no one, especially not the trembling form in his arms. He needed to find the monster who had done this, he needed Ianto to be safe again. "I will find him and I will kill him, no one will hurt you anymore." 

"I know you will." 

Jack started at the unexpected response and felt slightly embarrassed, but he caught himself quickly. 

"Hey, I didn't know you're awake." 

"I don't want to sleep anymore." 

"Yan, you need..." 

"I can't Jack, he will come back." Ianto sounded unbelievably young and so desperately terrified it ripped Jack's heart apart. 

"I won't let him." 

"It was that... that guy from the Brecon Beacons," Ianto whispered and clasped his hands tightly in Jack's shirt. 

Panic shot through Jack. They had looked at those files already, all the people from that village had been locked away, there was no chance that... then the penny dropped, Ianto was talking about his nightmare. Of course... Jack could have kicked himself. It was only natural that this experience would break up the old wounds. Cringing by the memories of Ianto being in pure terror after his ordeal in the countryside, Jack pulled the younger man even closer. He had suffered through way too much for his age, but Jack knew he would refuse taking retcon so he didn't even offer it. 

"It was only a dream, Yan," Jack said weakly, knowing that wouldn't comfort the young man. "Do you want to take a sedative? Owen gave me some in case we needed them." When he felt the young man nod against his chest, Jack entangled himself from under the duvet and went to the kitchen to fetch the pills and a glass of water. Back in the bedroom, he helped Ianto to sit up and watched him swallow his pill down with a gulp of water. He then put the glass on the bedside table and slid back under the duvet, Ianto instantly snuggled closer, almost trying to crawl into the other man. Suppressing a sigh, Jack just held on tight, stroking soothingly with his thumb over Ianto's back. 

The sedative didn't need long to take effect and so Ianto was quickly relaxing, his breathing evened out and the young man slipped into a deep sleep. A luxury Jack couldn't and wouldn't allow for himself. Not until he had caught the bastard who had done this to his lover. 

\---oooOOooo--- 

When Ianto awoke the next morning, he found himself in a tight embrace, smiling he snuggled closer to Jack before he tilted his head up to look at the other man. He frowned when he saw the serious expression on his lover's face enhanced through the dark circles under Jack’s eyes. 

"Jack?" 

As if he had been pulled from a deep trance, Jack flinched and blinked a few times before he looked down at Ianto. 

"Hey sleepyhead, how are you feeling?" 

"Better, a bit tired, but better. What were you thinking about?" 

"Nothing." 

"Jack!" Wriggling out of the embrace, Ianto propped himself up on one elbow, ignoring the strain on his ribs and looked sternly at his lover. 

"Yan...." 

"Tell me, Jack." 

"What do you think, I was ragging my brain with? I need you to be safe again and I have no idea how to achieve that. I have no idea who that bastard was, who destroyed the only place you felt safe, who ripped open old wounds and gave you nightmares again, who... who tortured you." Jack's voice had faded to a whisper at the end of his outburst and tears were threatening to fall again. He cursed himself for bringing all that up again, Ianto suffered enough without being reminded what had happened. 

Ianto looked stunned for a moment, then a small smile played around his lips and he reached out, tracing the way of the single tear that had escaped Jack's eye. His finger slid gently over Jack's cheek and wiped the streak away the tear had left before cupping the older man's face with his hand. 

"We will find him and we will deal with him, but promise me you won't destroy yourself over this. I need you, Jack. And you know as well as I do that I will never be completely safe while working for Torchwood, it's in the job description, but I wouldn't change it. I wouldn't change my life, not one single day." 

"Oh damn you Ianto Jones," Jack chuckled weakly. "I'm supposed to take care of you, not the other way round." 

"It's a two way street Jack," Ianto smiled. "And I remember you taking care of me last night." He slid his hand to the back of Jack's head and pulled the older man into a tender kiss, trying to put all his love into it. 

When they parted again, Ianto smiled. "Come on, let's get up, we need to catch the bad guy." 

"What would I do without you?" 

"Probably still catching the bad guys but without your morning coffee." Ianto leaned forward, giving Jack another quick peck and then climbed out of the bed.


	10. Rift Alarm

The week of forced rest had done wonders for his body. Most of the bruises had faded away and his brain seemed to fit in his head again.

Ianto stretched his body while walking to the kitchen. Even after being out cold again due to the sedative, the memories of the nightmare were still very vivid in his mind. He used the images to fuel his anger, he had already been through that and Ianto refused to let the fear from his time with the cannibals take over again. He had fought hard to get back on his feet after almost ending up on the dining table of those lunatics and he would not bow down again.

Taking a deep breath, he entered his kitchen and started to work his coffee magic, the routine was soothing his mind and gave him the calmness he needed to go through the day. 

After a few minutes Jack joined him and sat down at the table, watching his every move, taking comfort from the fact Ianto was still able to do these simple tasks. They both knew that it had been close and the threat was still lingering over their heads. 

Jack buried his face in his hands and took a deep breath. When the scent of fresh brewed coffee hit his nose, he peered through his fingers and found a steaming mug in front of him. Smiling he lowered his hands and clasped his fingers around the mug, closing his eyes to savour the aroma of the black liquid.

Ianto sat down opposite him, sipping his own coffee, and watched his lover. He loved watching Jack when the other man lost himself in the aroma of his morning coffee, it was one of the few things that calmed Jack down.

He was just glad, the rift had been quiet for the last week. Fighting some major or minor catastrophe wouldn’t have helped the team to deal with the shock of being attacked on a personal level.

\---ooOOoo---

I’m patient, but one week of waiting after the rush of hurting the boy is more than I can take. I’ve been watching them everyday, waiting for the right moment. I just know that it will come over the next three days. After overhearing the conversation between Harkness and the police woman, it’s obvious to me. 

My men are all on standby, it gets kind of hard to keep them calm, they’re not used to sitting around. But they are still taking orders from me, and it makes me feel good as I’ve never done anything like that before. But enough money can make you a leader.

A beeping sound from the monitors draws my attention. Harkness and the boy are just stepping into the tourist office. 

After my visit they have upgraded their security measures, you can’t enter their base anymore with simply pressing the button. The Japanese woman has installed a fingerprint reader and after some pressure from Harkness an iris scanner as well. No one can enter their base anymore. But I don’t have to, I’ve achieved my goal with my one visit. Harkness knows there is someone out there who is a serious enemy and the boy was terrified. Oh how I love to remember the horror in his eyes when I cut my mark in his chest.

My warning had definitely been received, it had been hilarious to watch them in their base, everyone wearing their stupid headsets and guns, Harkness allowed no one to go anywhere alone. But by now I can see the team flexing his rules, it has only been one week after my attack but they’re already starting to be careless again.

I cannot believe how easily they forget. I will never forget. My gaze drifts to the photographs on my table. I reach out to trace the smiling face of my…. No! I will never forget them!

I force my eyes back on the monitors, my anger feels good, it keeps me alive. Harkness and the boy just walk into the main level of their base, the Japanese lady, the doctor and the police woman already there.

Time to make myself some breakfast, there’s no point in watching them stumble through yet another day trying desperately to find out who attacked their pet boy.

\---oooOOooo---

“Morning.” Jack barked through the Hub, keeping his fear well hidden under a wide smile.

“Someone for coffee?” Ianto asked behind him, just shrugging his jacket off.

“Morning,” Tosh replied with a smile and added “Coffee would be great, thank you.”

“About bloody time, hurry up with that coffee.”

“Hello to you too, Owen,” Ianto shot back and set off to the coffee machine.

“Be nice, Owen!” Smacking Owen over the head with the file she held in her hand, Gwen greeted Jack on top of the stairs. “I’ve dug up another couple of files with possible suspects. Do you want to go through them?”

“Yeah, give me a minute to look through my emails, it’s time for the monthly status report and I’m sure UNIT and the PM are not happy about not having it yet. I need to stall them.”

Gwen chuckled. She remembered those reports and how pushy UNIT and the PM had been. Being in charge definitely had its downsides and reporting to those two was a big one and she didn’t miss it one bit.

She watched Jack disappear into his office and turned around only to stand face to face with Ianto who was carrying a try with mugs.

“Coffee?”

“You are an angel, you know that?”

“Apparently I’m all sorts of heavenly creatures,” Ianto smirked and continued his way to the autopsy bay to bring the stressed doctor his coffee. Only he didn’t make it further than the first step before the rift alarm gave off a blaring sound.

In a matter of moments the whole team was gathered around Toshiko’s workstation, who typed frantically on her keyboard.

“It’s a major rift spike from a deserted area at the outer skirts of the city,” she reported. “But I can’t say what has come through.”

“OK, kids, time to head out. Take the heavy weaponry in case we need it.”

Tosh, Gwen and Owen spread out instantly, gathering their equipment while Jack looked at the monitor, hands on his hips, but Ianto could see he wasn’t really paying attention to the readings.

“I will be fine, Jack.”

The older man turned to him, a pained expression on his face. “I can’t take you out with us and I don’t want you to be alone here.”

“I will be fine, I promise.” Ianto stepped closer and cradled Jack’s face in his hands. “The Hub is closed off, no one can come in. I bet Tosh’s new security upgrades are better than Buckingham Palace, the White House and Fort Knox together.”

“I’m not liking this one bit, what if it’s a decoy again?”

“We can’t suspect every rift spike to be a decoy, we don’t even know if the guy has the technology to use the rift.”

“Well, he produced that other signal.”

“Jack, please, what if this is really something dangerous that has come through the rift? You need to focus now. Go and save the world.” Ianto smiled and pulled his lover into a sweet kiss, before he pushed him in the direction of the garage. 

“I’ll leave Tosh with you.”

“No, Jack, you’ve seen the spike. Something big has come through and you will need all the hands you can get. I wish, I could go with you, but I’m afraid Owen won’t let me.”

“And you’re bloody right about that, tea-boy. So, I want my coffee when we get back.” Owen appeared from the autopsy bay, his backpack over his shoulder, walking past the two men. “Oh, and will you stop smooching around here? I think I’m getting sick.”

Jack grinned and pulled Ianto into another kiss, just to annoy the doctor. When they parted again, Ianto was slightly flustered and licked his lips.

“Be careful and keep the channel open all time,” Jack tapped lightly with his finger on Ianto’s head set.

The younger man nodded. “Be safe. I will monitor from here.”

Nodding, Jack tore himself away from his lover and jumped down the stairs, joining the others. With one last glance at Ianto he followed the team to the garage.

Ianto sighed when the door closed with a bang. Suddenly the Hub seemed to be too big and too small at once, he had the feeling the walls would close in on him. Shutting his eyes, he took a deep breath, telling himself that no one could possibly pass Tosh’s new security measures. Opening his eyes again, he smiled when he heard Myfanwy screeching over him, he wasn’t all alone after all. 

Sitting down at Tosh’s station, he tried to analyse the readings. Whatever had come through, it was not emitting any kind of energy signature, so he was hoping it wasn’t anything dangerous.

“Ianto, you there?” Jack’s voice came over the comm.

Ianto had to smile, the team had left only minutes before.

“Yes, I’m here, Jack. No change in the readings, whatever came through, it’s not something technological, at least nothing that emits any kind of energy signature.”

“I’m trying to pull up CCTV coverage,” Tosh joined in and the sound of her fingers tapping away on the keyboard came through the comm.

“I’m afraid there is no CCTV, it’s mostly barren wasteland. The city wanted to build a new housing estate there last year, but I think the funds have been frozen after Abaddon waltzed through the town centre and destroyed quite a few buildings. If I remember correctly they want to revive the project next year, providing there is not another incident.”

“Brilliant, so we have no idea what we’re walking into,” Owen was his usual annoyed self.

“OK, kids, keep your weapons ready and your eyes open. Ianto, report if there’s any change in the readings, we will be there in five minutes.”

Ianto grinned, for now he was glad not to be in that car. He could only imagine how many speed limits Jack had broken to get to the other side of the city in under 15 minutes. 

The readings still hadn’t changed and Ianto decided to get another cup of coffee as the first one was cold now. Pushing his chair back, he walked over to the machine, pouring himself another cup when a sudden noise scared the crap out of him. The cup slipped through his fingers and crashed to the ground while Ianto pulled his gun out in one smooth movement, pointing it in the direction the sound had come from.

“Damn!”


	11. Add a Weevil

“Ianto, everything alright?” Jack’s worried voice came instantly over the comm, having heard the sound of the shattered mug.

Drawing in some ragged breaths, Ianto tried to control his shaking hands again and lowered the gun.

“Yes, everything’s fine, I was just startled and dropped a mug.”

“You sure?”

“Yes, Jack, I’m fine. Concentrate on the road.”

Cursing himself for being so jumpy, Ianto knelt down to pick up the shattered pieces of his mug. He threw the remains in the bin and wiped the coffee from the floor and his clothes before attempting to pour himself another cup of coffee.

This time succeeding, he headed back to Tosh’s station, shooting an accusing look at the file that had slipped from the desk to the floor and had been the cause of his coffee bath.

\---oooOOooo---

I just walk back into the monitoring room when I see the boy crawling under the desk of the Japanese woman’s station. My heart skips a beat, how did he find my transmitter?

A moment later, I release the breath I wasn’t aware of holding, he had only picked up a file, his gaze still on the monitors above him.

That was close.

I sit down heavily on my chair. It’s time to act, I just need the right opportunity. I look at my calendar and smile at the big red cross that marks the weekend.

Then my attention is drawn back to the monitors, where are the rest of them? Rewinding the footage, I watch them leave after some sort of alarm sounded, almost getting sick by the sight of Harkness and his boy. So they are finally out on missions again, leaving the boy behind.

Taking a sip of my coffee I almost choke when I watch the boy freak out over the noise of some falling paper. He hadn’t forgotten.

I smile.

Very good.

\---oooOOooo---

“Ianto, any change in the readings?” Jack knew Ianto would tell them if there was a change, but he needed to hear his lover’s voice, needed to know he was still safe.

“Nope, readings are still the same. It’s probably just an inanimate object.”

“We will know in a second.”

Jack steered the SUV around the last corner and hit the brakes instantly.

“What the hell is that?” Gwen’s voice clearly showed the disgust, she was feeling.

“What is it?” Staring at the monitors in front of him, like they would finally show what the team was dealing with, Ianto waited impatiently of an update.

“It’s… err… yuck… what’s that smell?” Jack covered his mouth and nose with his hand and looked out of the front window.

“I think we can safely say it’s dead if the smell is anything to go by,” Owen grunted from the backseat.

“Yeah, but what was it?” Tosh tried her best to ignore the stench and peered over Jack’s shoulder to get a good look at what could only be described as big green and brown blobs.

“Are you trying to make me curious on purpose?” Ianto finally asked over the comm.

“Believe me, Yan, you don’t want to be here, it’s just disgusting. It looks like a swarm of weird space fish had come through the rift, only that their bodies seemed to be everted. Their internal organs are on the outside.” Jack had found his voice again and looked over the mess on the field in front of them.

“Uhm… beautiful.” Ianto swallowed hard, the mere description was enough to turn his stomach. And again he was glad he could sit out on this mission.

“Perhaps we should just let them decompose…” Jack opted, but his hopes were crushed by Tosh a second later.

“Sorry, but they emit a low level of radiation. We need to contain them, otherwise their remains could contaminate the whole area.”

“Brilliant,” Owen muttered, opening his door, reluctantly followed by the others.

*

The team needed the next two days for the clean up. Jack even ordered Ianto to help them as there was no immediate danger other than the disgusting smell. Although Ianto felt up for it, Jack only diverted the smaller tasks to his lover, still treating him with care.

At the evening of the second day they were all knackered and just wanted a shower and a bed. Rhys was waiting for Gwen at the tourist office, they were going to visit Gwen’s parents, which both were not really looking forward to, but they had postponed the visit for too many times and ran out of excuses.

Owen just pushed Tosh into his car and they drove off without so much as a goodbye, leaving Jack and Ianto to lock down the Hub. They shared the job of looking after Myfanwy and Janet, checking that they were all settled before climbing into the SUV and driving to Ianto’s flat.

It had been almost two weeks now until the last time they had some quality time together, but all they managed was a quick shower with some kissing before they hit the sheets being completely exhausted. It took only minutes for both men to drift off to sleep, Ianto curled around Jack’s body, his head on the older men’s chest.

*

They were still in that position when Ianto awoke the next morning. Slowly opening one eye, he glanced at the alarm clock and groaned. He had hoped to be able to turn around again and get back to sleep, but the red digits showed mercilessly that it was time to get up.

Disentangling himself from Jack’s embrace and the duvet, he winced slightly when his ribs protested the movement. He had guessed he would regret overdoing it the day before when Jack wasn’t looking, but he couldn’t bring it over himself to watch the rest of the team work so hard while he was only doing the easy stuff.

Rolling from the bed he smiled when he looked at Jack, who was still dead to the world. Ianto slipped on one of his worn out t-shirts and padded to the kitchen, starting his morning routine.

He just hoped the rift would show some pity and stay quiet. After all they were one team member short for the weekend.

\---oooOOooo---

I’ve watched with delight the last two days how team Torchwood had worked themselves to death. This would make my job so much easier.

And it was just after Harkness and the boy made their way into their base that I knew today was my day.

The doctor and the Japanese lady were already there, slumped in their chairs, the police woman was on the road with her boyfriend and Harkness announced he would be in a conference call the whole morning.

As soon as he disappeared into his office I called Frank.

Now I watch how the boy is preparing coffee again, while the Japanese lady is hacking half-heartedly on her keyboard and the doctor is doing some weird stuff in his mortuary.

A glance at my watch makes me smile, I start to count down, 3 – 2 – 1. Staring at the monitors I wait. Harkness is still in his office, for some reason he is in a video conference with the Prime Minister. It seems our government is aware of Torchwood and supporting it. I voted for that bastard!

But my anger at our traitorous government soon gets pushed away when I see the Japanese girl straighten up after an alarm alerts her to a message on her screen. I watch her face fall and know it’s the message I have been waiting for. 

I watch until the doctor and the boy join her at her station, I can see their annoyed expressions and smile. And then just as I’d predicted it, the Japanese lady and the doctor grab their weapons and head out of their base.

Switching the monitors off, I make my way to my bedroom to dress in my military outfit again. No need for them to find out who I am yet.

Knowing my men will handle their task without a problem, I lock my house and drive to our training base, an old abandoned warehouse.

\---oooOOooo---

“Are you sure you should go alone?” Ianto wasn’t the least bit comfortable with Tosh and Owen heading out on their own.

“It’s just a Weevil, Ianto. I think we can handle it.” Tosh patted him on the arm and grabbed her gun.

“I’m just saying we should at least tell Jack…”

“Jack is in a video conference with the PM, do you really want to barge in just because of a Weevil sighting?” Owen pushed his gun in the back of his pants and grabbed the keys for the SUV. “We can deal with it.”

“I should go with you.” Ianto was turning to get his gun as well, but a hand on his arm stopped him.

“Sorry, mate, but you’re not up for a one on one with a Weevil. I wasn’t really comfortable with letting you help us the last two days. You had a bad concussion and your rib won’t heal if you put constant strain on it. You’re much better help if you monitor from here.”

Ianto sighed, he knew the doctor was correct, his body had sent a clear message this morning about being overused the days before. But he hated being so useless and he couldn’t shake the bad feeling about Tosh and Owen heading out alone.

Watching his team mates walking out of the Hub and climbing in the SUV, Ianto flicked the monitor to the CCTV network to be able to follow their every step.

The sighting had been on the other side of the city, a very unusual place for Weevils, a fact that didn’t help to settle his bad feelings. He watched Owen park the SUV and then climb out, Tosh hot on his heels. 

“Be careful,” Ianto reminded them over the comm.

“Will do, now shut up, we need to concentrate.” 

Ianto watched Owen lifting his weapon and looking around. The doctor nodded at Toshiko and the woman stepped next to him, her gun at the ready. Suddenly Owen’s head shot around and he ran into a small alley, Tosh right behind him.

Flipping through the CCTV images from that area, Ianto got more anxious by the minute when he couldn’t find a camera that showed the image of that alley.

“Owen, Tosh.” Listening intently for a response he felt the panic rising. The only thing he could hear over the comm was white noise. With trembling fingers, he flicked through the CCTV cameras once more, but there was nothing out of the ordinary, it seemed like they just disappeared from the face of the world.

“Owen, damn it, answer me!” Ianto was sweating, he had known something would go wrong, they should have told Jack. He should have never let them go on their own.

“Tosh, please, say something.”

Again, only random noise was answering him.

The minutes were ticking away and he had still not gotten a response or found them on the CCTV, he knew he had to tell Jack, but he started one last attempt to call them.

This time he received an answer that froze the blood in his veins.

“Hey, boy, did you miss me?”


	12. Another Blow

I don't need video footage to know the expression on the boy's face after hearing my distorted voice. The modulator does its job and I can virtually see the boy trembling. I've heard him desperately calling his colleagues when I pulled the headset from the doctor’s ear and I can't suppress a smile. 

But I have to give him some credit as he recovers quickly from the shock when his ice cold voice comes over the comm. 

"Where are Tosh and Owen?" 

"Oh, they're here." I look over to the two unconscious Torchwood members Frank and Sam are just tying to chairs. 

"I want to talk to them." 

"I'm afraid, they are not able to speak to you right now. However, it's time to have some fun. Remember the knife, boy?" 

* 

Ianto pressed unconsciously his hand over the wound on his chest. The cross was still visible and he would keep a faint scar for the rest of his life. The thought of Owen and Tosh having to endure the same treatment was turning his stomach and made him feel sick. 

"Why are you doing this?" He managed to choke out. 

"I’ve already told you that. And the time for warnings is over, now it's time to suffer." The modulated voice sounded as if its owner gave a short laugh. "Oh, and by the way, how is Ms Cooper?" 

The click that indicated the terminated connection sounded unnaturally loud in Ianto's ears and he felt as if someone had punched him in his guts. His knees threatened to give away and he grabbed Tosh’s desk for support. It took him a moment to be sure his legs would support him before he made his way to Jack's office. He pushed the door open without knocking first and stumbled into the office, only half aware of having walked there. 

Jack was in mid-sentence, when Ianto stepped into his office and he could swear his heart missed a few beats when he saw the expression of the young man who clung to the door for support. Ianto was deathly pale and Jack knew instantly that something was very wrong. 

"I'll call you back." Without waiting for a response from the Prime Minister, he terminated the connection and practically jumped from his chair. He was at Ianto's side a second later and slid an arm around the younger man's waist. "Ianto, what's wrong?" 

"Tosh... Owen..." Ianto stuttered and tried to find the right words. He felt so guilty for letting them go, for not telling Jack first. "He… he has Tosh and Owen." 

Jack's face fell and he had to suppress the urge to shake Ianto and make the younger man talk. How could that happen? But then he looked at his lover and saw the fear in the blue eyes, fear for his colleagues and friends. 

"Ianto," Jack forced himself to speak gently and in a low voice. It would help nobody if he started to scream at the already terrified young man. "How?" 

"There... there was a Weevil sighting, Owen and Tosh headed out to contain it." 

"And you didn't tell me?" Jack immediately regretted raising his voice when Ianto winced and seemed to shrink back. 

"I'm sorry, I'm sorry. This isn't your fault." Jack pulled the younger man into his arms and held him close. He realized, while holding the slim frame of his lover to his chest how relieved he was that Ianto was still safe. Of course he was scared of what would happen to Owen and Tosh, but he couldn't afford to let his fear take hold of him now. He searched for the anger to distract him from his fear and quickly found it burning deep inside him. This was the second time someone attacked his team and he would kill that someone, with his bare hands if necessary. 

Jack closed his eyes and took a few deep breaths to calm himself down, then he slid his hands up to Ianto's head to cup his face. The usual so strong and determined eyes were now full of tears and desperation, Ianto started to slip back to his terrified self he had been after Lisa and the Cannibals. Now another threat was pushing the young man into a corner and from the looks of it he was losing the battle. Jack needed to pull him out of his trance. 

"Where did you lose them?" But he didn’t get an answer to his question. Instead the world delivered another blow to his already guilt stricken system.

"Jack, he mentioned Gwen." His voice was only a whisper when he uttered this last bit of horrible news, waiting for Jack to snap any second.


	13. Frequencies

Jack had the feeling a cold hand was smashing his heart and he could only stare at Ianto. He felt the younger man tremble under his touch and silent tears were running down Ianto's face. 

"What do we do, Jack?" Ianto hated being so frightened, but he couldn't help himself. It was too much and just the voice of that bastard had shaken him to the core. He was afraid of thinking what might be happening to Tosh and Owen in this moment and the fear of Gwen being abducted as well was eating through his soul. Ianto wished on nobody what he had gone through. 

But his words seemed to snap Jack out of his trance and the Captain ran to his desk and grabbed his mobile, hitting the speed dial for Gwen's phone. Looking at Ianto while the dial tone beeped in his ear, he started pacing his office. 

"Gwen, come on, pick up!" 

Ianto didn't dare to breathe in fear he could miss a sound from Jack's phone, but the seconds stretched and his body demanded oxygen. When he finally gave in and drew in a ragged breath the dial tone was cut off. 

Jack stopped dead in his tracks and pressed the phone closer to his ear, only hearing a mumbling noise. 

"Gwen?" 

Ianto stepped closer to his Captain, hope was written all over his face when he strained his ears to catch the reply to Jack's question. 

"No, it's Rhys. Jack is that you?" A groan followed the short outburst and Ianto etched even closer to Jack, begging with his eyes for the older man to hold the phone so they could both listen. 

"Is Gwen with you, Rhys?" 

"What?" The man was obviously confused and another groan came over the line before the voice clipped over to a hysterical tone. "Gwenny?" 

Ianto could practically see the other man looking frantically around for his girlfriend, but deep down, Ianto knew Rhys wouldn't find her. He felt his knees turning to jelly when he heard the confirmation over the phone. 

"Gwen's not here. Fuck, where is she? What... oh God... they took her!" There was a dull sound coming over the phone, like someone falling on a chair, when realization hit the Welshman. "They took my Gwenny. Jack what the fuck is going on? Where is she?" 

"Did you see who took her?" Jack tried to stay calm, but every fibre in his body told him to run and search for the bastards who had attacked his team. 

"They had guns... they shot at us." 

"Are you injured?" Ianto threw in, worried that not only Torchwood members were on the attack list now. 

"What? No... they weren't real guns, we were just unconscious. Oh god, Gwen's parents!" 

Ianto winced at the sound of Rhys' desperate voice. Gwen's boyfriend had nothing to do with Torchwood and her parents even less and still they had become victims to this madness. 

"Jack, what's going on here, who were they, where is my Gwenny?" 

"I don't know, but I will find out." Jack looked at Ianto, his expression screamed 'war'. "I have to go now." 

"Jack!" 

But Jack had already cut the connection and closed his phone. 

Ianto still felt the panic rushing through his body but when he glanced at his lover, into the cold, determined looking blue eyes, he knew there was no time to panic now. He needed to pull himself together. Clenching his fist and taking a deep breath, Ianto made a conscious effort to calm himself down, he needed to clear his mind and concentrate on the task at hand. He knew he could do it, had done it countless times before. There would be a time when everything is over, time to crawl into Jack's arms, searching for safety and reassurance, but now Jack needed him to fight. 

Jack saw the inner conflict in the young man and allowed both of them a small moment of comfort, pulling Ianto into a tight hug. Despite his worries about his team, he was thankful to have his lover safe and sound - okay maybe not sound, in his arms. 

"We will get them back," he whispered in the Welsh man's ear, smiling when he felt Ianto nod against his shoulder. 

Ianto was the first to pull out of the embrace, wiping the last tears from his face he looked determined at his Captain. 

"Where do we start?" 

"Show me where you lost Owen and Tosh." 

A moment later, both men were standing in front of Tosh's station and Ianto brought up the CCTV. They watched Owen and Tosh climb out of the SUV and a moment later the pair ran into the alley. 

"That's when I lost them. I couldn't find any CCTV of that alley and when I called them over the comm. It was dead. A few minutes later the guy was talking to me and told me he had Tosh and Owen. He will hurt them, Jack. He said as much." Fighting back another wave of tears, Ianto blinked angrily and looked at the still picture of the SUV parked in front of the alley where he had last seen his team mates. 

"How did he know where they would be? Why didn't he attack when we were cleaning up the gunk fish?" 

"Maybe he doesn't want to risk attacking us all at once? Picking us out one by one is probably safer for him." 

"Possibly. But how did he know where Tosh and Owen would go? They disappeared too quickly as if someone was waiting for them in the alley." Jack rewound the footage and pointed at the monitor. "Here, it looks like Owen is hearing something before they ran into the alley. This was too well organised, it couldn't be done if they had just followed them. There is not even a trace as to where they took Owen and Tosh after subduing them. This was not a quick catch." 

"But if they knew Tosh and Owen would be in that alley at that exact time..." Ianto pondered and stared at the picture. "They went because we got a message from the police of a reported Weevil sighting." Pulling the report up on the screen, he quickly scanned it. "Anonymous caller. Damn! It was a setup. I knew there was something wrong." 

"It's not your fault, Yan! You couldn't have known." 

"Maybe not, but the clues were all there. Anonymous caller, Weevil sighting in an area of the city that's usually devoid of Weevils, I should have stopped them." 

"Stop it, Ianto, we can't think that way. We need to concentrate on finding them, that's our priority." Jack knew he was telling the truth, but he couldn't shed the feeling of guilt himself. This was all happening because of him. But there was no time for thoughts like that; he shook them off and looked on the monitor again. 

"How does he know so much about us? How did he know about Gwen being with her parents this weekend? She took care on their way there that no one followed Rhys and her. And why do I have the feeling he had expected that only Tosh and Owen showed up after the Weevil call? He probably counted you out because..." Jack didn't finish the sentence, both men were well aware of the why. "But Gwen and me, we were not out of the picture. Why do I have the feeling he knows everything we do?" 

Ianto looked at Jack, pondering the possibilities. "It's like he has access to our CCTV, like he can watch our every move." Frowning, the young man gnawed on his lip before a realization hit him. "He had been in the Hub, what if he bugged us somehow?" Stepping to Tosh's console, he hacked a few commands into the mainframe. 

"What are you thinking?" Jack had somehow lost track and was now looking over Ianto's shoulder at the screen the young man had pulled up. 

"If he had bugged us, he didn't have much time. Tosh went through all of the CCTV when they... when they attacked the first time. She said she didn't find anything out of the ordinary. He couldn't have much time to install something, so it must be a transmitter that taps into our CCTV network and sends out the information on another frequency. Otherwise it would be tampering with our network. I'm setting the computer to scan for unusual frequencies in the Hub, maybe so we can.... there!" Ianto pointed at the monitor where they could see a couple of wave lines. 

Jack stepped closer and looked intently at the monitor. "What am I looking at?" 

"See, the first wave shows the frequency of our CCTV network, the second is our Comm- System, the third is unknown. We don't use that frequency because it's not safe." 

"Can you find the origin? From where it's sending?" 

"Give me a moment." Frantically typing a few more commands, the screen showed a rough plan of the Hub. While the men were watching, the plan changed, showing the different levels of the Hub until stopping at the main level. It zoomed in and the computer calculated the trajectory of the signal, marking the spot with a red blinking dot. 

"But that's...." Jack stuttered, looking confused. 

"Right here."


	14. Battle

Gazing bewildered at each other, they stepped back and took a closer look at Tosh's station. Everything seemed to be in order so Ianto went down on his knees and crouched under the table. Between the cabling he found a very small metal casket. Handing it over to Jack, he scrambled to his feet again, brushing the dirt from his hands and pants. 

"Oh, sweet," Jack whistled and turned the small box in his hands. "This is some neat bit of technology. It automatically locks on to the nearest video stream frequency and sends the information to a receiver." 

"Do you have any idea at what range?" 

"No, but it can't be more than ten miles." Jack closed his fist around the box and looked at Ianto. "Do you think you can configure the rift scanner to trace this frequency?" 

"I can try." Frowning, Ianto turned to Tosh's computer and pulled up the rift monitor program, entering the frequency he started a city wide scan. Again both men stared anxiously at the screen when it showed a map of the city and quickly zoomed in to a location in Splott. 

"Ianto Jones, you are brilliant!" Jack shouted and swept his lover in his arms, kissing him soundly. "I'm going out and getting them back." 

"You're not going alone." 

"Yan..." 

"No, Jack, I'm not letting you walk into this alone. For all we know, this could be another trap." 

"All the more reason for you to stay in the Hub." Jack squeezed the transmitter in his hands to keep himself from grabbing Ianto and locking the young man into a cell. He didn't want him near that bastard ever again. 

"Jack, this is not up for discussion. I'm going with you." Ending the dispute effectively, Ianto turned and walked to his station to get his gun. Jack was still growling when he came back. "Are you coming?" 

Resigning, Jack grabbed his coat and started to follow Ianto, when something hit his mind. "The SUV is still in that alley." 

"We'll take Owen's car, the keys are on his desk." Ianto didn't wait for Jack, but made his way to the garage, already drumming his fingers on the roof plate of the car when Jack barged through the door.

They didn’t lose another second, jumping into the car when Jack had unlocked it. Ianto just slammed his door shut again as Jack floored the accelerator and the sports car skidded out of its parking spot. 

Jack ignored every speed limit, both men well aware of the fact that the footage of them finding the transmitter had been sent to the receiver as well as all the other footage. If they had been watched the rest of the team was in even more danger now than before.

Ianto used one hand to steady himself, while the other held his PDA, showing the still active transmission frequency. Switching the PDA to another screen, he now looked at a map of Splott, the red dot still pointing at the location of the receiver.

“We’ll be there in a minute, get ready.” Jack showed a grim expression, his hands clutching the wheel in a death grip. 

Ianto just nodded, taking a few breaths to calm down his nerves. They had no idea what they would run into. They were outnumbered at least three to two for all they knew and they had no idea about the condition of the rest of the team. 

Jack steered Owen’s car around the last bend and hit the breaks, bringing the car to a screeching halt.

Ianto checked one last time the location of the receiver and confirmed their position to Jack. Pointing at a small house surrounded by a green garden, he stuffed the PDA into his pocket.

“This is it. How are we goning to do this?” Pulling his gun and flipping the safety off, Ianto looked at Jack.

“I’d say we kick the door in and see what will happen. You stay behind me, if they get me with their first shots, it will give you time to aim and kill. No prisoners.”

Ianto nodded and after a sign from Jack, both jumped out of the car and ran to the front door of the house, Jack pulled his gun, while he ran, using his momentum to kick the door down. Ianto was close on his heels, his weapon pointed out and ready to shoot.

They made it through the hall without any resistance, securing room after room. There was no sign of Owen, Tosh, Gwen or the kidnappers. When they were sure the ground floor was deserted, Jack indicated the staircase and started to walk upstairs slowly. Ianto made one last sweep of the floor before he followed Jack, climbing the stairs, his heart pounding in his chest.

When he reached the top step, he saw Jack disappearing into a room. Looking around carefully, Ianto set off in the other direction, heading for the only other door. Slowly pushing the door open, he found another empty room. Only the slight disarray of the furniture and some discarded clothing showed that the house was actually occupied.

Then his gaze fell on another small door embedded in the wall.

“Jack.” 

He slowly approached the small wooden door, relieved when he heard Jack’s heavy footsteps behind him.

“Ianto wait, let me.” Jack didn’t wait for confirmation but just headed for the small door and yanked it open, fully expecting to be shot to hell.

But he stared into yet another deserted room, only this one showed him that they were in the right building.

“Yan.”

The younger man had already stepped behind his Captain and looked over his shoulder. One wall of the room was covered with monitors and he didn’t need a second look to recognize the shown images as the interior of the Hub.

Now sure that they were alone in the house, he put his gun back in its holster and stepped into the room. There was a desk with a computer terminal in front of the monitor wall. 

“Maybe I can hack into the computer and find out where they have taken Owen, Tosh and Gwen.” Not waiting for an answer, he sat down on the wooden chair and hit a key on the terminal. He was too occupied to hear the quiet beep that followed that act.

However, Jack didn’t miss the sound and he followed the noise that had come from behind the desk. When he bent over to look at the floor between desk and monitor wall, his heart dropped. Within milliseconds his eyes notified his brain of the danger and he grabbed Ianto’s arm and yanked the young man from the chair.

“Out now!”

Not caring about the confused questions from his lover, he pulled Ianto through the room and down the stairs as fast as he could, just thankful that Ianto didn’t resist physically.

Ianto didn’t know what to make of the sudden hurry of his Captain, but he had learned to trust his judgement and now only tried to keep up and not tumble down the stairs. He was just relieved of the front door still being open because otherwise they would have smashed against it.

Both men were barely through the door and out on the front lawn when a loud explosion tore through the early afternoon and the upper floor of the house ceased to exist. The blast wave knocked them both off their feet and they crashed into the narrow fence while the debris from the explosion rained down on them.

A sharp pain in his side was the last thing Ianto felt before everything went black.


	15. Rubble

He came back with a gasp and flailed his arms wildly. When Jack's vision cleared, he felt the pain. He was squished under a big chunk of brick wall. Blinking a few times to find his bearings, the last seconds before the explosion slowly filtered back in his mind. They had managed to make it out of the house, Ianto had been directly in front of him. 

Ianto! 

Where was he? Jack struggled desperately to dislodge the weight pressing him down, but it wouldn't budge. Craning his neck, he searched for his young lover, his heart missing a beat when he saw a suit covered leg lying unmoving on the pavement. The young man must have crashed through the fence, but that had saved him from the worst of the debris. 

"Ianto?" Jack couldn't keep the worry from his voice, he didn't know what he would do if Ianto had died. He was already reproaching himself for not reacting quicker, for letting Ianto activate the terminal, for letting Ianto get hurt again. "Ianto please, say something." 

Only silence greeted him. It was then he realized the people milling about, looking with shocked expressions at the destroyed house. A few men were just carefully approaching him, mindful of not disturbing the unstable rubble any more than necessary. 

"Hey, mate, how are you?" One of the men asked rather stupidly. 

"I'm fine, what about my friend, I can only see his leg, what about him, how is he?" Jack rambled the words out, again trying to free himself from the rubble lying on top of him. 

"Hey hey, stay calm. Your friend is looked after, now we need to get you out. Stop moving or the stones will crush you." 

Jack forced himself to stay still, waiting for the men to slowly push the stones to the side. He gave a pained yelp when one of the bigger chunks was lifted from his right leg allowing the blood to circulate again. When the men finally managed to lift the piece of wall a little for another man to pull him out, Jack helped as good as he could and skidded backwards. As soon as he was free of the weight, he scrambled to his feet ignoring the screaming pain all over his body. Clambering over the rubble, he tumbled over the fence. 

"Easy, mate, you shouldn't move, the ambulance will be here any second." The man who had pulled him free was calling after him, shaking his head in disbelief. 

Jack didn't hear him, he had only eyes for the still form lying on the pavement. Two women were kneeling next to Ianto, pressing a piece of cloth over a bleeding wound at his side. Jack had to swallow a sob that threatened to escape his throat and reached carefully for Ianto's face. The young features were covered in dirt and dust and a few new bruises were already beginning to show. Jack was torn between desperation, guilt and anger. Whoever it was that was pissed off at him and probably had every right to be angry at him had no right to hurt his team, to hurt Ianto. Silent tears streamed down Jack's face, leaving streaks on his dirty face. Only the fact of the slow up and down of Ianto's chest that indicated the younger man was still breathing was calming Jack a little. 

He didn't hear the women talking to him, didn't hear them telling him that Ianto would be alright. Jack only saw the bruises and the blood seeping through the cloth. Only when he was dragged aside by a paramedic, he snapped out of his trance, the sounds coming back to his attention and he realized the ambulance had arrived. 

Two of the medics were fussing over Ianto, lifting him carefully onto a gurney while the third led Jack to the ambulance. Jack couldn't take his gaze from Ianto, ignoring the medic who tried desperately to talk to him. He brushed off every attempt from the medic to take a look at him, just muttering that he was okay and that they should look after Ianto. 

"Listen, mate, my colleagues are looking after your friend. I need you to tell me if you hurt anywhere." The medic finally grabbed Jack's shoulders and pulled him around. "Let me help you." 

Jack looked at the man in front of him as if he had seen him for the first time, then remembered what the medic was trying to do. 

"I'm okay, really." 

"From what I've heard, you've been lying under a brick wall, I sincerely doubt you are alright," the medic persisted and reached out to prod Jack's chest. 

Catching the young medic's hands, Jack peered on the name tag. "Listen, James. I'm really okay, believe me." Capturing the gaze of the medic with his own, he stared the young man down. "Now, I need to know how my friend is doing." 

"He will be okay," one of the other medics, a woman, spoke up. "You two have been very lucky. He will have a headache and the cut on his side needs stitching, but other than that, I can't find anything. Of course we need to take you both to the hospital to check you over properly."

Jack released the breath he had been holding and thanked whichever God was responsible for watching over the young man. Again, Ianto had beaten all the odds and came out of a deadly situation with only some minor injuries. Jack wondered just how many lives the Welshman had left. At the rate he was using them, it couldn’t be many more.

\---oooOOooo---

A beeping sound from my handheld distracts me from pondering what to do first with the Torchwood employees in my hold. I fumble the small device from my pocket and can’t suppress the angry growl that escapes my throat. The PDA has received a signal from my computer at home, someone had tripped the system, meaning that I have no home anymore. Harkness must have found the transmitter and followed it back to my house.

I almost hope that Harkness had died in the explosion, even if it will rob me of the opportunity to torture him.

Cursing silently, the possibilities of what to do with the Torchwood pack are suddenly very clear in my mind.

When I turn around, stuffing the PDA back into my pocket, I see the doctor looking at me. Maybe he knows something has pissed me off even more, because his eyes show the fear he had been hiding so well until now.

I smile when his face falls further as Dave and Stephan enter the warehouse, dragging an unconscious Gwen Cooper between them. They heave the limp figure on a chair next to the Japanese woman and secure her.

When they’re finished I wave them over to order them quietly to check out my house. I watch them leave before I turn back to my prisoners.

I know the doctor is dying to speak, but the gag sits tightly in his mouth and so he can only communicate with his eyes, expressing his hatred for me. Chuckling, I approach him, satisfied when he flinches back. I guess, I will start with him.

\---oooOOooo---

Jack was still cursing his carelessness and the fact he had allowed Ianto to accompany him in the first place, when he paced the hospital hall, having fought off any attempt of the doctors to pull him in one of the examination rooms. The medic had said Ianto would be alright but they were checking him over for almost thirty minutes now. 

Ianto had regained consciousness on their way to the hospital and instantly tried to convince everyone in the ambulance that he was fine and good to go. But one look at Jack’s face and the stern voice of the female medic had shut him up rather quickly. He had been ushered away on the gurney as soon as they’d arrived at the hospital and that was the last Jack had seen of his lover. 

The Captain had tried everything to find out what they were doing with Ianto, but neither flirtatious seducing of the nurses nor furious shouting had helped him. Now he restrained himself from punching the wall in frequent order.

He was rubbing his hands over his face when a familiar voice caught his attention.

“Jack.”

Whirling around, a smile spread on Jack’s face. “Ianto!” With two quick strides he was next to his lover, carefully pulling him into a hug. “How are you feeling?”

“In the light of having been blown up, rather good,” Ianto stated dryly, hugging Jack back.

“I’m sorry.”

“For what?” Pulling back out of the embrace, Ianto looked confused at his lover.

“For not getting you out sooner.”

“Jack, don’t be daft, if it weren’t for you, I wouldn’t be standing here. And from what I’ve heard they had to pull you out from under a big chunk of brick wall. The medic couldn’t believe you weren’t injured.” Ianto focused Jack with his eyes. “Have you died, cariad?”

Jack’s evasive gaze was enough to tell Ianto the truth.

“Oh, Jack.” Pulling his lover back into the embrace, Ianto clung to Jack, glad for the millionth time that Jack couldn’t die. But he knew what it did to Jack, the darkness, the fear of not waking up. Jack had told him that he always remembered his time in the darkness and that something was with him, something bad.

“I’m okay,” Jack insisted and now it was his turn to pull out of the embrace. “Have the doctors released you?” Changing the topic, Jack stuffed his hands in his coat pockets.

Knowing that he wouldn’t get through to Jack, Ianto sighed and held a bag with pills up. “I released myself. They wanted me to stay over night, but we have more important things to do than lie around. They gave me a couple of pain killers and threatened to tie me to the bed the next time when I don’t check in with them if the pain gets worse.”

“I didn’t know the doctors here were so kinky.”

Rolling his eyes, Ianto turned and walked down the hallway heading for the exit. “Come on, let’s go.”

“We need to take a taxi, Owen’s car is still in Splott.”

”We better get the SUV then.”


	16. Contact

I let my gaze wander over the slim body of the doctor. His eyes never leave me, looking at me with a mixture of hatred and terror. He had seen what I had done to the boy, he had probably been the one to stitch him up afterwards.

I shift my gaze to the Japanese woman, who is also awake now and watches me with fearful eyes. Fearful of what I would do to them.

I smile under my mask, they can’t see my face, it’s not time yet to reveal who I am. Looking back at the doctor I have to stifle a laugh. He is still trying to lose the ties which secure him to the chair. The skin at his wrists is already torn and blood had dyed the rope in a dark red.

I reach out with my hand and let my fingers gently trace over his cheek, only grabbing his head forcefully by his hair when he jerks away.

“You are as guilty as Harkness. All of you. You could have stopped him. Fuck, you’re a doctor, it’s your duty to save people!”

I savour his painful moans when I’m pulling his head back further. My anger is back in full force, I can feel it rushing hot through my veins and I know I can’t wait much longer for Harkness. But for now his sweet little team will have to do.

I let go of the doctor’s head and rip his shirt open with both hands, exposing his pale chest. When he mumbles something in protest, I silence him with a quick blow to the face, watching in fascination how the blood spills from his now split lip.

The Japanese woman is screaming into her gag as well, I need silence to do this so I turn to her abruptly and gift her with a blow to the face as well.

“Silence!”

I’m breathing hard now, they both only look at me, blood trickling down their faces, but finally they are quiet.

I pull the knife out again and watch it catching the light. Turning it a few times, I follow the blade with my finger while stepping closer to the doctor again.

His breath is coming in fast gasps now, his eyes show stubborn resistance. I will cut that out of him. When I’m done, there will be only fear and pain.

It takes only two quick strides with the knife and a nice cross marks the doctor’s chest, I almost can’t hear his howls of pain, because of my own blood rushing in my ears. The adrenaline is flooding my body and the feeling of power is beyond every high I had ever reached in university with dope. 

I see everything crystal clear, the blood running down over the pale skin, sticking the few hairs there together, the quick up and down of his chest, the shivers. The muscles cramping forcefully, indicating the huge amount of pain, stress and fear the doctor tries to control.

I can feel the smooth surface of the knob of the knife still in my hand, the pure power it gives me. My breath is hot underneath the mask and I wish I could take it off, but it only intensifies the rush. Sweat is trickling down my cheeks, running down my neck and soaking the collar of my jacket. I can feel the heavy boots on my feet, the stiff material of the military pants at my legs. The small pressure in my pocket where I put the small gismo which had me allowed all this in the first place. I can almost feel it eradiating waves of approval.

I close my eyes for a moment to take everything in, to be able to remember the feeling forever. If just hurting a person brings those kind of feelings, then how must it feel to actually kill someone? 

I will find out soon enough, when Harkness will be tied to a chair as well. And he will have to watch me kill his team one by one. Marking them now is just for my pleasure, after experiencing the rush with the boy I needed to recreate that feeling.

Just when I ready myself to continue with the Japanese woman, I feel a buzzing in my pocket. Angry for being disturbed, I pull my phone out and hit the answer button, listening to Stephan on the other end.

“We’ve spoken to a few people here and they all tell the same story. Two men escaped the explosion almost unharmed. It seems to be a miracle if you could believe the stories. It seems out targets have….”

“Come back here,” I cut him off and end the connection. Although now I will be able to kill Harkness slowly, I feel an irrational anger about him and the boy not dying in the explosion that destroyed my home. But it only fuels the anger I feel anyway.

I step to the desk my men had dumped on all the equipment they had stripped of the prisoners and grab the comm unit.

\---oooOOooo---

It didn’t take them long to get to the SUV and Jack had driven them back to the Hub. The trip had been very quiet, both men had been deep in their thoughts. After the feeling of relief about escaping a deadly situation, their thoughts had come back to the rest of the team. They still had no idea where that mad man kept Owen, Tosh and Gwen. And each minute they lost by standing around and looking for clues could be the minute the others died.

A desperate attempt at locating the phones of Owen and Tosh had only resulted in them driving back to the alley where they had vanished. Now Jack was pacing in his office and Ianto scanned for the fifth time for the energy signature that had been the cause for the trouble in the first place.

“Harkness!”

The voice over the comm stopped them both in their tracks.

“Who is this?” Jack finally asked, forcing his voice calm and emotionless.

“So I see, you still haven’t figured that out.”

“Who are you?”

“I’m the one, who’s house you’ve destroyed.”

“Yeah, I’m sorry. I guess we activated the trigger for the explosives by mistake,” Jack replied dryly and slowly walked out of his office.

“Don’t start being cocky, Harkness. I have your team.”

“I want to talk to them.”

“I’m afraid that’s not possible. You see, they wouldn’t stay quiet so I had to gag them, although it was a pity to tune out the painfilled screams by that.”

Jack felt a cold hand closing around his heart and he had to swallow. “If you hurt them…”

“It’s already to late for threats, Harkness! You caused this by destroying my life. Now I’m going to destroy yours. Now tell me, how do you like the mark on your pet?”

Jack’s gaze jumped to Ianto just in time to see the young man wince. Guilt and anger shot through him like fire, this had to end now.

“What do you really want from me.”

“I already told you.”

“You want to kill me.”

“Yes!”

“Then tell me where you are. You can have me, but leave my team out of this.”

“You will find me, when I’m ready, but for now I need some more time with your precious Toshiko Sato and Gwen Cooper.”

“Leave them alone!” Jack shouted, not able to keep calm anymore.

“Oh, and tell the boy, I’m starting to regret, I didn’t take him with me. I really miss him.”

“I warn you, I…” Jack stopped when a click indicated the termination of the connection. “NO!” Screaming in frustration, Jack kicked hard against the small table in front of the couch, sending it flying across the room. He hated to be this helpless, he didn’t know what to do, how to save his team.

“Jack, I think, I know where he is.”


	17. Battle

Ianto’s quiet voice cut through Jack’s rage, stopping him immediately. 

“What?” Disbelief was written all over the Captain’s face.

“I triangulated the signal while you were talking and I was able to pin down the location of the other comm unit. It’s in an empty warehouse in the eastern part of the city.” 

Jack could only look at the young man in front of him, while he slowly processed the new information. Finally a big smile spread on his face and he swept Ianto off his feet into a tight hug. 

“Ianto Jones, you are brilliant!” Rewarding the young man with a mind blowing kiss, he put him down again, his brain already working on a plan of how to get the others free. 

Ianto saw the telltale signs of Jack working out a plan and straightened his battered suit jacket. “I hope you include me in your plans Jack, because I won’t sit tight in the Hub and let you run out alone.” Seeing the frown of rejection on Jack’s forehead, Ianto held a hand up. “Don’t even start, Jack! We are both going.” Ianto turned back to the console in front of him and pulled up a blueprint. “I have the layout of the warehouse and the surroundings, just tell me what we need and I’ll get it.” 

Jack opened and closed his mouth a few times, only to stare in unmasked admiration at the young man in front of him. Ianto had already had to endure torture, pain and near death, yet here he was, ready to go into battle again. 

Jack promised himself he would do anything to keep his lover safe this time. A quick glance at the blueprints told him everything he needed to know and he sent Ianto off to the armoury with a list of things they would need. Only ten minutes later they sat in the SUV and were on their way to what was hopefully the last battle in this war. 

\---oooOOooo--- 

The screams of the Japanese woman are just fading away, bathing me in yet another rush of power. The short conversation with Harkness had filled me with even more anger. Who does he think he is? 

The doctor wouldn’t stop shouting through his gag, while I was working with his colleague so I had Frank and Bobby shut him up. I guess they feed on the rush of power just like I do. And who am I to deny them their pleasure? 

When I open my eyes, I see with satisfaction that the policewoman has finally regained consciousness. Just in time. 

\---oooOOooo--- 

Jack had parked the SUV some distance from the warehouse to avoid being discovered too early. Now both men made their way to the warehouse, carefully running from cover to cover. Jack had insisted on Ianto wearing a bullet proof vest and both had checked their guns a couple of times now. They equally had enough ammunition to fight a small war and Ianto was also carrying a bag with smoke grenades. 

When they reached the warehouse, they crouched down to both sides of the door, Jack had chosen for their entry. Pulling the handheld scanner from his pocket, Ianto looked at the small display. 

“I can’t get any readings. The warehouse was used for cold storage; the walls are lined with an extra layer of steel and lead. The scanner can’t penetrate it. We have to go in blind.” 

Jack nodded and took a few deep breaths. He had instructed Ianto on their way to the warehouse. The young man’s priority was to find the others and get them out if possible. Jack would deal with whoever was in there. 

Just before Ianto opened the door, Jack reached out and pulled him over for a kiss. 

“Please, be careful! I don’t want to lose you. Don’t take unnecessary risks and remember, shoot to kill. We don’t have time to take prisoners.” 

“You be careful as well, Jack!” 

“I love you.” 

A smile split Ianto’s face as he pulled the pin from the grenade in his hand and opened the door. “Let’s get them back.” Throwing the grenade inside, he quickly armed another and let it follow the first one. 

They waited a few seconds, pulled their gas masks over their heads and headed inside. They were already met with confused shouts and orders barked to secure the place. 

Jack instantly ran to the right, following the wall for a few yards before disappearing into the smoke. 

Ianto looked around quickly and could make out three sitting shapes through the smoke. The familiarity of that picture made him wince, but he now knew for sure where his team mates were. Throwing two more grenades into the large room, he looked around once more before lifting his gun and making his way to his colleagues. 

When the first gunshot echoed through the large building Ianto threw himself on the ground. With his eyes fixed firmly on the figures in front of him, he crawled over the concrete. He tried to ignore the shouting and the sounds of running feet; his job was to get the team out. Jack would take care of the rest. 

But Ianto knew it wouldn't be that easy. 

He had almost reached the sitting figures when a man came running from the thickening smoke and got tangled in his outstretched legs. The man fell down with a surprised yelp, but managed to catch his fall by curling into a ball. Ianto was as startled as the man, but his instincts kicked in and he shifted to one side, pointing his gun in one fluid motion at the man and fired. He realized it was just in time when a gun fell from the outstretched hand of its former owner and clattered to the ground immediately followed by a now dead body. 

Now quickening his pace, he finally reached his team, finding Owen and Tosh unconscious but Gwen was staring with wide eyes at him. He pulled his knife out and made quick work of the ropes that tied her to the chair. Handing her a weapon, he tended to Tosh next, cutting her lose and gently lowering her limp form to the ground to get her out of the line of fire. He was too occupied with untying Owen he didn't realize Gwen was disappearing into the smoke. 

Ianto pulled Owen from his chair just in time as a bullet hit the back of the chair and sent the wood splintering in all directions. Using his body to cover his two unconscious team mates, Ianto took in a ragged gasp, suddenly feeling like he was suffocating beneath the gas mask. He yanked the mask from his head and turned around, expecting to find Gwen cowering next to him. But his eyes met only more smoke that slowly began to burn like fire in his eyes and made them water. Where the hell was that woman? They needed to get Tosh and Owen out of here. 

First a shout, then a gunshot grabbed his attention. That had been Jack's Webley without a doubt. Ianto tried to look through the smoke, but it was too thick. More gunshots were echoing through the warehouse followed by an eerie quiet until a pain-filled scream ripped through the silence. 

Ianto would recognize that voice everywhere. 

"Jack!" 

He tried to scramble to his feet, but a hand suddenly grabbed his wrist and he looked in shock at a now conscious Owen, who could barely keep himself upright. 

"It's you!" That had been Gwen's voice.

Ianto's head shot around when another loud bang ripped through the warehouse. 

"Gwen!" 

Shrugging Owen's hand off, Ianto forgot all caution and ran into the smoke. His feet carried him to where he believed he had heard Jack scream, but he found nothing. Barely avoiding running into the wall, he stopped and listened intently. There was someone groaning. Jack! 

Quickly he followed the sound and after a few steps he almost stumbled over Gwen's bleeding body. 

"Fuck!" Kneeling down next to her, he ripped her shirt open to find the wound. What he found made his heart stop for a moment. An ugly gunshot wound, which was bleeding heavily marked the former PC’s body. "Owen!" Hoping the doctor wasn't unconscious again; Ianto desperately shrugged off his vest and jacket, grabbed the jacket and pressed it onto the wound. "Owen! I need you here now!" 

Only marginally noticing a door falling shut, Ianto was relieved when he heard stumbling footsteps. Owen appeared just a moment later, looking in horror at Gwen's unmoving form. He seemed to forget his own pain and fell to his knees, pressing his finger to Gwen's neck, searching for a pulse. Relief washed over his face when he could feel a faint sign of life pumping through the vein. He pushed Ianto's hands away and lifted the makeshift pressure dressing. 

Ianto didn't miss the quick expression of shock on Owen's face before the medical mask fell into place, and so he was already fumbling for his mobile when Owen pressed the cloth back on the wound and hissed they needed an ambulance as quickly as possible. 

Dialling with shaking fingers, Ianto scrambled to his feet and looked around. He saw the smoke slowly dissipating and scanned the warehouse for any attackers, but he could only see Tosh still lying unconscious next to her chair. A few yards away lay the man Ianto had shot. When he looked at the other side of the warehouse, he found another two bodies. 

No sign of Jack. 

A voice in his ear reminded him of the task at hand and he told the person in short sentences that they needed an ambulance and quickly. Ianto forced himself to listen to the woman on the other end and answered her questions as best as he could, while looking worriedly down at Owen who suddenly had started CPR on Gwen. 

"Just send that damn ambulance or my friend will die!" Ianto finally shouted into his phone before snapping it shut and kneeling next to Owen. "What do you need me to do?" 

"Just keep pressure on the wound and pray," Owen replied between giving Gwen mouth to mouth and a cardiac massage. 

Ianto only nodded numbly and watched the doctor fighting for his patient. The seconds stretched into minutes and it seemed like hours to Ianto until the ambulance finally arrived and the paramedics took over. It all happened in a rush, Gwen was rolled off to the ambulance and the car was springing into gears the second the door had closed. For some reason a second ambulance arrived at the scene with a couple of police cars and the place was filled with people milling around in no time. Owen and Tosh were ushered away to the waiting ambulance, which left Ianto standing alone in the middle of the warehouse, Gwen's blood staining his clothes and the sickening knowledge sinking in that Jack was in the hands of that mad man. 

Wincing when someone touched his arm, he blinked a few times before the face in front of him came into focus. 

"Hey mate, are you alright? Do you need medical attention?" 

Ianto blinked again a few times, the words only slowly making sense to him, but he shook his head in the end. 

"I'm fine." He looked again at the policeman standing in front of him and racked his brain from where he knew his face. Finally it fell into place and he recognized Gwen's former colleague. "Andy, right?" 

"Yeah mate. Can you tell me what happened here? This doesn't look like one of your Spooky doo’s." 

Ianto took a deep breath; there was no time for explanations. Jack was gone and he needed to find him. Visibly pulling himself together, Ianto slipped his professional mask into place and shook his head again. 

"Sorry, I can't tell you anything. I need you to secure this area and transport the bodies to your morgue, but they are not to be touched under any circumstances." Ianto saw the face of the other man scrunch up in anger and added in a calmer tone, "I'm sorry Andy. I'll try to explain when this is all over, but right now there is no time." With his eyes almost begging for the other man to understand, Ianto was relieved when Andy finally nodded. 

"I sure hope I will get an explanation this time! Bloody Torchwood." Giving Ianto a half smile, Andy patted him on the arm. "I'll take care of everything here, just go and chase your Spooky doo’s."

Ianto nodded thanks to the PC and headed for the door, turning around when Andy called his name. 

"It was Gwen, wasn't it?" Andy's voice was almost trembling now and his eyes showed the worry for his friend. 

"Yes." 

"Will she make it?" 

"We don't know yet." Ianto was surprised how calm his voice sounded while he felt everything but calm. 

"She is a fighter." 

Ianto smiled half-heartedly. "Yes, she is." Then he turned around and jogged to the door, stopping at the threshold and looking back at the PC now standing in the same place as he had before. "Thank you, Andy." With that he left the warehouse, noticing that the ambulance was gone and with it Tosh and Owen.


	18. Different Views

Jack watched Ianto enter the building and crouch down on the other side of the door. He felt proud of the young man, but at the same time he was terrified, terrified to put him in danger again. But, as much as he wanted him safe inside the Hub, he needed Ianto here. 

And first and foremost he needed a clear head now, the quicker he could shoot down their enemy the safer Ianto would be. 

Taking a deep breath and pushing his emotions back he turned to the right side of the warehouse, running past the wall for a few yards before delving into the smoke. He followed the shouting and held his Webley at the ready. The smoke was covering his steps and he hoped it would give Ianto some safety as well. He strained his eyes to make out any movement in the smoke and was rewarded a moment later, when he saw a figure running in his direction. As Ianto was on the other side of the warehouse, he could be sure; this was one of the enemies. Not thinking twice, Jack aimed and fired his gun. The figure screamed in pain, before crumbling to the ground. 

Jack knew he had revealed his position by firing his gun and dropped down just in time before the shooting started. Bullets were whizzing over his head and Jack could only hope Ianto and the others of his team wouldn't get caught in the crossfire. He crawled over the floor, trying to ascertain the positions of the shooters to take them down. At least now he knew that they weren't dealing with professionals. The shooting was too random and he heard running footsteps, anyone mad enough to run through a smoke covered room during a shootout couldn't possibly be a professional. 

He followed the sounds of the footsteps and realized with a sick feeling in his stomach that the person ran into Ianto's direction, a scream and a gunshot confirmed that suspicion. Trying to calm his mind by telling himself that it hadn't been Ianto's screaming voice, he continued to close in on one of the shooters. He could already see the muzzle flash in the distance. Concentrating on the flash, he quickened his pace, tensing his muscles and just before he reached the other man, he jumped to his feet and tackled his victim to the ground. Ignoring the surprised shout, Jack pushed the man away from him and fired. He didn't take the time to look into the now dead eyes that stared up at him. 

Jack had already picked his next victim and crawled towards them. Bullets whizzed over his head and echoed in the large warehouse - and then suddenly nothing. Jack stopped in his tracks and listened into the sudden silence. Cursing the smoke, now for dampening the sounds as well as offering cover, he strained his ears. Not daring to get up, in case the shooting started again, Jack resumed crawling slowly into the direction of his last target. 

He had no chance to act when suddenly two men jumped out of the smoke, one kicking his gun from his hand, while the other placed a well aimed kick to his head. Not able to suppress a scream, Jack's world became blurred and he couldn't dodge the next blow to his head, this time with the barrel of a gun. He felt hands grabbing him and dragging him away. His last thought before he slipped into unconsciousness was aimed at Ianto and his team. He just hoped he hadn't failed them completely. Again. 

\---oooOOooo--- 

Oh, how I'm enjoying this. The policewoman is staring at me with her big eyes, only slowly finding her bearings. She has just found her unconscious colleagues sitting next to her. The Japanese woman's body seemed to have given in after I was finished with her and the doctor was finally silent after Frank and Bobby had beaten some sense into him. Now my attention is undivided and I step closer to my last victim. The knife is already covered in blood and the liquid glistens in the light of the warehouse. 

I trail my finger slowly over the woman's cheek, satisfied that she doesn't flinch away. Her eyes show more expressions than I thought possible: defiance, anger, fear, hatred and even pity. Maybe I should tend to her eyes after I've marked her, she won't need them for long anymore anyway. 

My men are watching me, Dave and Stephan had returned not long ago, reporting again, that my house is completely destroyed. They had spoken with a few people and everyone told the same story about the man who should be dead, but was not. 

Harkness. 

It will be time soon. I can feel the device in my pocket; I can almost hear a voice in my head begging for it to be activated. But first I need to mark the policewoman, need to feel the rush of power. 

I reach out to tear her shirt open, when I hear one of the doors being opened. My head shoots around and I see two small canisters clatter on the ground, releasing clouds of smoke a second later. 

What the fuck? 

My mind works a hundred miles a second. How could they have found us? I didn't activate the transmitter. My gaze falls on the doctor, slumped in his chair and I give a growl. That damn comm unit, they must have been able to trace the signal. Swirling around, I start barking orders, the smoke has almost covered half of the warehouse now and I send my men to grab their weapons. When I turn back, I see the policewoman watch me with a smug expression, I wish I had the time to cut that expression from her face, but I hear the door being opened again and two more of those smoke bombs clatter over the concrete. I settle for a quick blow to the face before turning away again. 

I hate to let the prisoners be unguarded and curse my carelessness to leave the weapons with our other stuff at one side of the warehouse. Running towards my men before the smoke completely engulfs everything; I shout orders to secure the warehouse. When I reach the others I see Dave and Sam already running towards the intruders. Keeping Frank and Bobby at my side I order Stephan to guard the prisoners. 

When I hear the first gunshot paired with a scream I know this will end ugly. Frank and Bobby instantly open fire and I let myself drop to the ground. This is madness; we need to regroup to get hold of the situation. 

Another scream, from the direction of the prisoners, tells of a second man being down, quickly followed by a third. By then I finally manage to reach Frank and Bobby and signal them to cease fire. After that a sudden deafening silence spreads in the warehouse. 

I motion my men to move forward, indicating for them to be silent. Watching them disappear into the smoke, I'm satisfied when I hear a pain-filled scream a few moments later. I scramble to my feet again, surprised to find myself face to face with the policewoman. I'm too shocked to react in time and she grabs my mask and pulls it from my face. 

"It's you!" 

Staring at me disbelievingly she obviously can't comprehend what she is seeing. I use this moment of confusion and fire my weapon. This will rob me of one prisoner to kill in front of Harkness, but I'm guessing that plan has been literally shot to hell anyway. She crumbles to the floor, the expression of disbelief even stronger now on her face. One hand is pressed on her wound, the other reaches out for me, but I bat it away, pick up my mask and turn to leave. 

I'm immediately presented with a sight I have been waiting on for so long. Frank and Bobby have Harkness hanging between them. I motion for them to hurry and we make our way to the door at the other side of the warehouse. The boy screams for his lover and colleague, and then just as we reach the door, I hear him cry out for the doctor. He must have found the policewoman. 

I curse Harkness for robbing me of the opportunity to torture and kill his team, but with three of my guys down, I don't have the manpower to grab the boy or one of the others. At least the famous Jack Harkness will now suffer my anger. 

We quickly make our way to the van parked outside and Frank and Bobby throw the limp form of our new prisoner into the boot. I climb behind the wheel and tell them to tie Harkness up. I'm not in the mood for another failure now and I'm definitely not in the mood for Harkness waking up and causing havoc while we're driving. 

As it is getting dark, I decide to drive to our second safe-house. The place I've chosen for Harkness' last breath is better accessible in daylight. But I'm already pondering the options of what to do with him in the meantime.


	19. Hospital

Ianto had driven to the hospital without really noticing it. His last hope of finding Jack safe and sound was shattered when his lover wasn't standing next to the SUV with one of his cheeky grins plastered to his face. And he was devastated when one of the PCs called after him and held Jack's Webley up for him to see. Ianto had taken the gun without saying a word and had climbed into the SUV, driving off before the PC could stop him. 

Now he walked into A&E of St. Helen’s Hospital, not really knowing what to do next. Wandering through the corridor, he remembered how Jack had waited for him here just a few hours ago. When Jack had still been safe. Ianto remembered the tender hug, remembered the relief on Jack's face that Ianto was still alive and walking. 

Leaning with his back to the wall of the corridor, Ianto clenched his eyes shut. Their so called rescue mission had gone totally wrong. Jack had been captured and Gwen was fighting for her life. At least, Ianto hoped she was still fighting. He had no idea what had happened to his team mates after they were transported off the scene. Taking a deep breath, Ianto pulled himself straight and looked around. He needed to keep focus on the here and now. 

Just when he pushed himself away from the wall a nurse was heading towards him. 

"Hey sweetheart, do you need help?" She reached out and gently took him by the arm, obviously trying to usher him to one of the examination rooms. 

"I'm fine, thank you. I just..." 

"Oh, I don't think you're fine. You certainly don't look fine." The nurse interrupted him and kept pulling him towards one of the open doors. 

Ianto realized he needed to make himself a little bit clearer and twisted his arm from her grip. 

"Really, I'm fine,” he said while pulling his Torchwood identification from his pocket, hoping that would help to pacify her.

She stopped and gave him a look that quite clearly said that she understood who he was, but that he was still making a big mistake. She could forgive him for that though because he wasn't in possession of all his faculties at the moment. Then she lowered her gaze to his hands, and when he followed her eyes, he could see why the woman was acting so strongly. His hands were still covered in Gwen's blood, as was his shirt. His pants were still bearing the marks of the explosion and he had left his blood soaked jacket back in the warehouse. He must be a picture of complete misery. 

"It's not my blood." He started and swallowed hard. Suddenly he found it extremely difficult to talk about Gwen and the others. He couldn't bear the thought of Gwen maybe not surviving. "It's my friend's. She... She was shot, they brought her in earlier. I need to find out how she is." 

The expression on the nurse's face softened instantly. "Oh sweetheart, I'm sorry to hear that. Do you know when she was brought in?" The nurse took his arm again, but this time she led him towards the counter. "My shift just started, but we will find out what happened to her. Just give me a second. My name is Sian by the way." Parking Ianto at the counter she went around it and pulled up a file on the computer. "Here we go, female, gunshot wound to the chest." 

Ianto winced at the clinical words, unwilling to connect them to Gwen. He clenched his fists unconsciously and flashes of Gwen smiling at him with her toothy gap, Gwen laughing and prodding him playfully in the side, Gwen comforting him during the time Jack had left them appeared in front of his inner eye. He stifled a sob that threatened to escape his throat and blinked away the tears that lingered in his eyes, ready to fall. 

Sian looked at Ianto and realized how harsh her words must have sounded to him. Quickly she stepped around the counter again and put her hand on his back, stroking him gently. "Sorry sweetheart, I didn't mean to sound so clinical. The file says, she is still in OR. So let's get you cleaned up a bit while you wait, okay?" Pushing him gently towards the room the nurses used for their breaks as not to spook him again, she managed to march him a few steps, before he stiffened again. 

"My friends..." 

"She is still in OR, sweetheart. There is nothing you can do now." 

"No! Owen and Tosh they were brought here as well." Ianto started to twist out of her grip again, but this time Sian held on tight. 

"Shhh, calm down. If your friends are here then they are well cared for. Now let's take care of you for a moment. I promise you, I will help you to find your friends later." She sensed that the young man next to her was on the verge of going into shock and she needed to calm him down quickly. Pulling him along with a little force, she was relieved when he started walking again. She finally managed to sit him down on a chair and stroked gently over his head. He looked very young, but his eyes showed that he had seen a lot of pain in his life. 

"Just sit tight for a second, okay? I'm just getting a cloth so we can clean you up a bit." Sian felt like she was talking to a child, but the young man was reacting to her calm voice and nodded. Hurrying to get a cloth and some warm water, she returned only to find him now slumped down in the chair. It almost broke her heart to see him like that and she didn't even know who he was. 

Except that he was working for bloody Torchwood. She had heard stories about them and she didn’t like what she had heard so far. And she remembered some of the doctors talking about strange injuries on patients brought in by Torchwood. Shaking her head, she regarded the young man for a moment. He seemed far too young and innocent as to work for an organisation like Torchwood.

Squatting down in front of him, she put the bowl with water next to her on the floor and started to wash the blood from Ianto's skin. He watched her numbly, watched as the blood was slowly washed away, revealing his pale skin. He held still when the nurse started to gently wipe the cloth over his face, obviously clearing it of blood and dirt. When she was finished, she smiled at him. 

"See, all clean again. Now, if you could do me a favour and stay put for another second, I'll get you something to drink." Standing up again, she grabbed the bowl and the cloth. Before she left the room, Sian glanced back at Ianto shortly, only to appear a moment later with a bottle of water and a plastic cup. She poured some of the water into it and stepped back to Ianto. Taking one of his hands in hers she pushed the cup into it, almost lifting it to his mouth to indicate, he should drink. 

Ianto did what he was told even though he felt empty and alone. The last time he had felt like this was when Lisa had died and during the time Jack was gone with the Doctor. Oh my god, Jack! He was in the hands of that mad man! And although Ianto knew that Jack wouldn't die, or to be more precise, stay dead, that fact especially scared him to death. This could be the ‘Year That Never Was’ all over again for Jack. 

Ianto swallowed hard, he had been shocked when Jack had told him about his time at the Master's mercy. A time full of torture, abuse and humiliation. Ianto shuddered, he couldn't let that happen again.

The stubborn streaks of his personality were finally finding their way to the surface and with them came anger. He welcomed the feeling; it would give him the energy to keep going, to get through this and to get Jack back. Straightening up again in his chair, he looked at Sian and smiled. 

"Thank you," he said warmly and put the plastic cup he was still holding on the table behind him. "If you could help me now with locating my friends, please? They weren't injured as badly as my other friend; they are probably still here in A&E." Standing up, he made his way out of the nurses' station, ignoring the astonished look on Sian's face. 

She looked after him for a moment before following him. She had never witnessed a change like that in a person before. The young man had gone from utterly desperate and miserable to confident and hopeful in under a second. She didn't know if she should take this change as a good sign or not, but for now she had no choice other than to hurry after him. He was already waiting for her at the counter, presenting her with a gorgeous smile that made her knees wobble. He seemed to be a completely different person and she couldn't say which version she liked more: the handsome, confident man in front of her or the sad boy that needed her protection from five minutes ago. 

"If you could look for Owen Harper and Toshiko Sato, I would be very grateful." Flashing another smile at her, Ianto leaned over the counter to be able to look at the monitor. He knew he was acting, but he needed this confident persona to hide behind now. He felt anything but confident, but his team and Jack needed him to stay focused. 

Sian quickly typed the names in and nodded when the respective patient files popped up. "They are still here in A&E, you were right. I can take you to them." She closed the files and rounded the counter again, indicating him with her hand to follow. They walked to the end of the corridor. To the same room which he had been in earlier this day, Ianto noted with grim smile. 

Feeling a ton of weight being lifted from his chest when he saw both his colleagues looking at him when he entered the room, Ianto allowed himself to be thankful for at least them being safe. 

"Hey Teaboy! About time you showed up!" Owen's harsh words were betrayed by the warm smile that spread across his face at seeing Ianto on his feet, alive and well.

"Stop it!" Tosh immediately reprimanded the doctor and smiled at Ianto as well. "Thank you for getting us out." She reached out and Ianto took her hand in his, gently squeezing it. "Where's Jack?" 

The atmosphere in the room seemed to instantly get darker when Ianto swallowed hard and shuffled unconsciously with his feet. 

Owen frowned and craned his neck to look at the open door. "Yes mate, where is he? Did he follow those bastards?" 

Ianto shook his head almost imperceptibly and took a deep breath before he spoke. "I don't think Jack made it out of the warehouse on his own accord." 

The bit of colour that had come back to Tosh's cheeks vanished when she put together what Ianto was saying. 

"What do you mean?" Owen's voice was hoarse. 

"I think they took him. I think Jack is in the hands of that lunatic. The police found his gun. Jack goes nowhere without his Webley. And I heard him scream during the shooting." Ianto felt like crying again, but he had to pull himself together. He swallowed hard and pushed the tears back that threatened to fall. "We need to find him. Quickly." 

His colleagues were shocked but nodded. Suddenly Owen's head shot up. 

"How is Gwen?"


	20. Waiting

"What about Gwen?" Toshiko looked confused at her team mates. 

"She is still in the OR." 

"What?" Now sitting up straight in her bed, Toshiko stared at Ianto. "What happened?" 

Ianto's gaze flickered between Owen and Toshiko before he started to explain. "She was shot in the warehouse and I think she knows the person who shot her." 

"How so?" Owen clenched his hands involuntarily, still feeling Gwen's blood on them. 

"I heard her say 'it's you' just before the shot." 

"Well, I guess that means she knows the shooter,” Owen agreed, repeating Ianto’s earlier statement.

"Apparently." 

"Well, that means she can tell us who we're up against!" Tosh was still wrapping her mind around the fact that not only Jack was missing, but that Gwen was down too and using her brain to analyze the facts was the only thing she could do to not go insane.

Neither Owen nor Ianto had the heart to say what they were both thinking: If she makes it. 

\---oooOOooo--- 

I'm buzzing with life. Ever since the second I pulled the trigger on the policewoman I have had the feeling that I'm bursting with energy. The rush is indescribable. And now I have Harkness. He is finally at my mercy…only that there will be no mercy. 

Looking at my watch for the billionth time, I walk away from the window I am standing at, cursing the night for robbing me of the opportunity to deal with Harkness instantly. But as soon as he wakes up he will get a special treatment. It's still eight hours until sunrise and the bastard is dead to the world, denying me the pleasure of torturing him to pass the time. 

I begin to get angry at Frank and Bobby for being so thorough in rendering him unconscious, but I know this was the only possible way to get Harkness out of the warehouse. I ponder to send Frank out to grab the boy; it shouldn't be that hard now with the majority of the team down. And it would be nice to get my fingers on the boy again. 

I don't even think twice about Sam, Stephan and Dave; anyone stupid enough to get himself killed doesn't deserve to be one of my followers. The only thing that matters is that I am finally close to my goal. 

Tomorrow, Harkness will die. 

\---oooOOooo--- 

"Where is my Gwenny?" Rhys yelled while he stormed into the A&E of St. Helen's, glancing around frantically until his eyes fell on a distinctly worried looking Ianto. Running over to the young man, Rhys grabbed him, shaking the slim body to get an answer out of him. Only when Ianto didn't respond in any way, the Welshman stopped and looked at him properly. He winced when he took in Ianto's appearance. The young man looked like he had been run over by a truck. Twice. 

Rhys felt his blood run cold when he watched a tear escaping Ianto's eyes. Letting go of the young man, he stepped back, clasping trembling hands together. 

"Is she... please, don't tell me she is..." 

Ianto's head shot up. Calling Rhys was one of the hardest things he had to do in a long time. Usually it was never about people he knew, but this time... He really liked Gwen's fiancé. Rhys was a down to earth guy and he didn't deserve to know about all the cruel stuff going on in this world. And he especially didn't deserve a call that asked for his presence at the A&E of a hospital because his girlfriend was fighting death. 

"She is still in the OR," Ianto managed to press out; relieved he didn't have to tell Rhys the worst. "They wouldn't tell us anything else." That was true, even showing off his Torchwood ID to several doctors hadn't gotten him the answers he needed. 

"How long?" Rhys croaked out, looking like a man who would collapse at any moment now. 

Ianto saw the change in the other man and quickly stepped forward. Reaching out he gently took Rhys’ arm and pushed him in the direction of the room, Tosh and Owen still occupied. 

"They brought her in two hours ago." Ianto felt the other man stiffen in his grip and sighed. He could sympathize with Rhys, but at least Gwen was still alive and cared for in a hospital. Ianto couldn't bear thinking of what Jack was enduring right now. Shaking the numb feeling off, that repeatedly tried to get hold of him; he pushed the door open to the room that represented their current headquarters. 

Tosh slid from her bed instantly and took Rhys in her arms, the big Welshman gratefully wrapping his arms around the small woman. 

Stepping aside, Ianto watched Tosh thankfully, relieved that his friend felt well enough to get up again. He had winced when they had told him about their time being held captive, about the beating and the torture. Both his colleagues were bearing the same marks on their chest as he did since his encounter with that bastard and in addition to that, Owen’s body was covered in bruises and he also had a few cracked ribs.

Just when Ianto stepped over to Owen, who was sitting on his bed, Rhys looked up again, but never released the hold of Toshiko in his arms. He saw that Ianto wasn't the only one who looked like they had had a rough time. 

"You've all been injured..." Rhys couldn't help but state the obvious, but this time not even Owen made a snarky comment about that. "What the hell happened? And where is Jack?" Seeing the look on their faces he almost instantly regretted asking that question. 

Ianto was the one, who finally spoke up. "It's a long story, but to give you the short version: Tosh, Owen and Gwen had been captured and Jack and I tried to get them out. The guy who held them captive is not really what I would call pleasant to be around, but I guess that's obvious. Gwen was shot during the rescue and Jack..." Ianto's voice broke at this point and he had to swallow hard. This was ridiculous, since when had he become so weak? But, the continued stress was probably taking its toll. 

"Jack was taken." Owen finished the sentence. 

Rhys swallowed; he had never seen Team Torchwood this down. "Do you know where he is?" 

Ianto could only shake his head. Feeling the numbness creeping up his spine again, all he could do was fight back. There would be a time to break down, but not now. He concentrated on taking deep slow breaths to calm himself. He felt tired and worn out and his body screamed for him to rest, but he had to stay alert. He forced himself to search for the anger in him, he needed the feeling to keep going, to stay awake and to not fall apart. Jack needed him now more than ever. 

"We think, Gwen knows who attacked us," Tosh spoke up, still wrapped in Rhys’ arms and had the tall man look down at her. 

"How?" 

"She seemed to know the person who shot her." Tosh looked at Owen and Ianto. "So we hope that she can tell us who it is when she wakes up again." 

Pulling himself straight again, Ianto fished the portable scanner from his pocket and handed it to Owen. "And we need to be ready. I'll go back to the Hub and check for any new readings, maybe run a citywide scan again. Perhaps I can pick up a signal from Jack's wrist strap. I'll leave you the scanner so you can check for signals as well." 

Owen grabbed the younger man's arm when he was heading for the door. "You can't go alone, it's not safe." 

"I can take care of myself and you need to rest for as long as you can. I will need you when we know where Jack is." Ianto looked determined and shrugged the hand of the worried doctor off. "I'll have my phone with me the whole time. Call me when there's any news." With that Ianto strode from the room, ignoring Tosh calling out for him. He needed to do something, just sitting around was driving him crazy and his mind was not helping by making up every gruesome scenario it could think of. 

He had seen enough wounds to know that Gwen had been severely injured and if she survived it would take the surgical team a couple of hours to patch her up. He couldn't bear the thought of sitting around and waiting all that time. That bastard could do anything with Jack during that time and the mere thought of that paralyzed Ianto. And he couldn't afford to crumble now, doing something; however pointless it might be, would help to keep his mind occupied. 

And even if he had banned the thought from his mind for the moment, the possibility that Gwen wouldn't make it was looming over their heads. And they had nothing to go on other than their assumption and hope that Gwen could provide them with the necessary information to find Jack. What if she died? How would they find Jack? He needed to figure out another way; they needed a backup plan. 

When he stepped outside, the cold breeze made him shiver and reminded him of his jacket-less state. Changing clothes was the first thing on his list then, he thought as he headed for the SUV.


	21. Desperation

Ianto climbed into the SUV and made his way to the Hub. He went through everything they knew in his mind, just to block out his imagination, mentally kicking himself each time his thoughts wandered back to Jack and whatever was happening to him right now. 

And he knew, despite everything, Jack would be yelling at him now for being so reckless, for running around alone and practically presenting himself as a target. Ianto smiled grimly. Part of him wanted to be found, he wanted to be grabbed, because that would mean he would be close to Jack again. But the rational part of him knew that was not going to happen. If he let himself be captured, that bastard would use him to hurt Jack. He would probably kill him in front of Jack and that would help nobody. 

No, if he wanted to get Jack back, he needed to be careful. Although he doubted that the wanker would come for any of them now. At least he hoped it. 

Driving into the underground car park, he carefully checked his surroundings before he climbed out of the car. The garage seemed to be empty; however, he had his gun at the ready, when he quickly ran to their direct entrance to the Hub. Cursing when the new security measures took so long for him to enter, he gave a sigh of relief as the door finally clicked open. With one last glance around the parking garage, he entered the dark tunnel and shut the door behind him. 

This was not good, he thought, when he leant against the door trying to calm his breath. He shouldn't be afraid to walk around, he was Torchwood after all. They were the ones catching the bad guys. But he couldn’t shut up the tiny voice in his head that was mocking him: This time Torchwood had been crippled and caught by the bad guys. 

Ianto tightened his grip around his gun, drawing comfort from the cold surface and the weight. He could do this. He would find Jack and he would get him out. Pushing himself away from the wall, he started to jog through the tunnel, determined to do anything that would help to bring Jack back. However, he took a quick detour and stepped into their locker room to shed his bloody and torn clothes. Pulling on a pair of jeans and a hoodie, he thrust a change of clothes for Tosh and Owen into a bag as well, figuring they would need them. 

He wasn't kidding himself, he would need them to bail Jack out. He hated the fact he had to pull Owen and Tosh from their hospital beds, but there was just no way could he risk going in at the wanker - as he had come to call their enemy in his head - and his quite trigger-happy minions alone. 

Grabbing another bag, he filled it with everything that would come in handy from the armoury. This time they wouldn't play around. It was kill or be killed, and Ianto preferred the first. 

Both bags ready, he put them on the small table in front of the couch and turned to Tosh's station, feeling all the energy being pushed from his body, when his eyes fell on Jack's mug. Ianto closed the distance to the desk on wobbly knees and lifted the mug with a trembling hand. Jack must have placed it there when they were frantically looking for any sign of Tosh, Gwen and Owen earlier. 

Swallowing hard, Ianto angrily pushed the tears back and slammed the mug down on the desk again. He would not break down now. He didn't know how often he had told that to himself today and the fact that he even had to keep telling himself to hold it together frightened him. He had never considered himself to be that weak. 

And he wouldn't start becoming weak today. 

Almost forcefully pulling the keyboard to him, he quickly pushed a few buttons, pulling up the readings from the rift monitor. His eyes scanned the shown figures, but there was nothing out of the ordinary. Ianto cursed inwardly, starting a manual scan for the frequency that had brought so much pain and destruction over them. 

Again, nothing. 

Feeling the need to kick something, he cried out in frustration. "Damn it!" 

\---oooOOooo--- 

When he woke up, Jack wished he would have still been unconscious. His head was throbbing and as he came too a little more, he found himself tied to a chair, his shirt and shoes gone. Squeezing his eyes shut against the bright light that stole its way through his closed lids, he winced when he heard a male voice loudly announcing his new state of consciousness. Then a hand grabbed his hair and pulled his head forcefully back. 

"Hey pal, about time that you joined us." 

Jack couldn't suppress the groan that escaped his lips. 

Two pairs of footsteps were closing in and then he heard a familiar distorted voice say: "Forget the boy for the moment; you can play with the Captain." 

The words were like a blow to his stomach. This can't be…oh please…Ianto! He had failed to protect him. Again. That mad man had captured them both and was only forestalling Ianto's 'treatment'. 

Jack felt the bile rising in his throat and he forced his eyes open, ignoring the sharp pain the light produced in his head. He quickly took in his surroundings. He was in a small room, empty except for the chair he was tied to and the bastard that was forcing his head back into an impossible position. No windows, just one door and in that door stood the reason for all the pain. 

"Well, well. Look who is awake." 

"Let Ianto go!" Jack spat out, followed by a groan when his head was yanked back even further. He was too occupied not to cry to notice the short moment of confusion in his captor. 

"And why would I do that?" 

"You have what you want. You have me, you don't need him anymore. Please!" Jack wouldn't shy away from begging if it meant that Ianto was getting out of this unharmed. 

"I don't think so." The man finally stepped into the room, slowly sauntering towards Jack. "You know, it's not only the part of killing you that's on my list. No, I want to destroy your life like you have destroyed mine. And I'm guessing that boy is your life." 

"Please don't, I'm begging you!" Jack couldn't hold back the sobs anymore. Hell, he had never been one to cry in situations like this, but then, he had never been in a situation in which a person he loved was going to be killed. Killed, because of something he had done. "Please. You can do with me, whatever you want, but please let Ianto go." 

However, the humourless laugh from his captor robbed him of the last bit of hope that Ianto would be spared. 

"The great Captain Harkness is crying his eyes out, because of one little boy whore." The masked man obviously chuckled, but the voice modulator made it sound like the laughter from hell. "I'm afraid though, that you're missing the point. You see, I can already do whatever I like. With you. With the boy. With the rest of your team. Nothing you say will change anything." The man bent down, his masked face close to Jack's while he trailed a single finger gently over Jack's cheek, almost whispering his next words. "And you will suffer." The man straightened up again abruptly and headed for the door. "Boys, you have one hour and remember: I want him still alive after you're done with him." 

Jack watched the man leave the room. He was confused. There was something off with that guy, he couldn't really pinpoint it, but there was something strange going on here. Why was he still wearing a mask now? His men obviously weren’t sharing that concern anymore. He was still pondering that, actually forgetting his fear for his team, when the first blow to his face ripped his head around. 

He tasted blood instantly, but had no time to dwell on that, as another pain exploded on his right cheek. His head snapped to the other side and he was positive, the twinge in his neck was the sign of a pulled muscle. Dragging instinctively at the ropes that bound his hands to the chair, he was slowly chafing off his skin. His muscles already protested against the forced position and the tension in his arms and shoulders spread over his back, slowly starting to cramp with each movement.

Blow after blow rained down on him, until he couldn't differentiate anymore between the pains due to yet another blow to his body or the now constant throbbing that had all his nerves on fire. He had the feeling the beating had been going on for hours, having lost his sense of time long ago. His mind had retreated to his safe place; pictures of Ianto were running in front of his inner eye like a film. And it was the feeling and the knowledge of having failed Ianto yet again that followed him into unconsciousness. 

\---oooOOooo--- 

I feel the need to kick something. Hard. 

Harkness is finally awake and I chicken out, leaving the pleasure of torture for Frank and Bobby. I never saw this coming; there was something about him that stopped me. But not again, I will finish this and I will do it on my own. Frank and Bobby can have their fun now. And oh, they are enjoying every moment of it. I can hear the groans from the other room. The pretty face will be gone, when they are finished with him. 

I try to dwell on that. Maybe it's for the better that my men can let off steam now, so they will be focused later on. 

I sit down on the only other chair in this poor excuse of a hut and pull my knife from its sheath, turning it over in my hand. There's still dried blood on the blade, blood from the doctor and the Japanese woman. Maybe even blood from the boy. I recall the feelings that were rushing through me when I cut my mark in the chests of the Torchwood members, the feeling of power when I shot the policewoman. 

I have to smile when I remember Harkness begging for the boy. I was surprised when he mentioned him, but it suits me if Harkness thinks I have his whole team in my grip. He won't try anything if he thinks it will hurt his team, hurt his boy. Not that he is in any position to escape, especially not after my men are finished with him. 

A glance at my watch reveals that it's only five hours until sunrise; I can almost forget my failure when I think about the moment Harkness will die. 

\---oooOOooo--- 

Ianto felt like screaming. 

Since Gwen knew the guy that was attacking them, he figured he would go through all the case files they had worked on since Gwen joined Torchwood. He had dismissed the files from the time Jack had been gone, and he had tried to further shrink the pile by tossing all the cases about weird aliens aside as well. Nevertheless, that had still left him with a quite impressive stack. By now he had looked through half of it, so far with no use. He couldn't single out a suspect that fit the profile even close. Almost three hours wasted for nothing. 

He wished Toshiko was here to help him. But he wasn't ready to call her in yet. Sighing, he checked the rift monitors and the scanners for the fifth time in the last hour, by now familiar with the readings that told him that nothing was happening. He rubbed his eyes and stifled a yawn. He had only been up for maybe 18 hours now, not counting the time he had been unconscious from the explosion. But he had the feeling he hadn't slept for three days. A totally inappropriate grumble from his stomach reminded him that he hadn't eaten in all that time as well. He hated the thought of stopping now, but he also knew that he would be no help to Jack if he fainted from hunger and exhaustion. 

In the end Ianto submitted to his hunger and made his way to the kitchen. He found some left-overs in the fridge and prepared himself a cup of coffee. Armed with his findings, he went back to his files in the conference room and pulled the next one to him, stifling a sob when he opened it. This one was about Tommy and the time disturbance. It wouldn't help him in finding the wanker, but the memories of what happened the night before they had to send Tommy back were threatening to overwhelm him. It had been the first time that Jack had told him that he loved him. Ianto couldn't keep the tears in that were now running down his face. He remembered that it had been the moment when he knew Jack had truly come back for him. They had shared a kiss that was not only a kiss but a silent agreement to put the past behind them and start something new. 

Ianto was sobbing now, not able to hold it back anymore. He knew he wouldn't lose Jack to Death, but there was no way of telling what his time in captivity would do to him mentally. 

The sudden ringing of his phone pulled him back to the here and now. He looked numbly at the small piece of electronics for a moment, watching how the vibration alarm let it slide over the smooth surface of the table. Finally snapping out of his trance, he slid his phone open. 

"Hello?" 

"Hey Teaboy, it's Owen. They just brought Gwen out of the OR. We're not allowed to see her, but they let Rhys in. Apparently it was a very close call, but she will make it." 

If Ianto hadn't been already sitting, he would have fallen down now. The relief of hearing those words made his knees wobble and he thanked whatever god was responsible for letting Gwen live. 

"Hey, you still there?" 

Ianto opened and closed his mouth several times, before he could muster up enough energy to speak. "Yes, I'm here. I'm just glad to hear that she will be okay." 

"We all are, mate. We all are." 

"I know this might sound insensitive, but when can we speak with her? So far I have found no clue as to where to look for Jack. Gwen might be our only hope of finding him." 

"Ianto, Gwen has just gone through five hours of major surgery,” Owen’s voice came calm and serious over the phone. “Her body suffered a major trauma and she is on a lot of pain medication. She will probably wake up in a few hours, but there is no way of telling, if she will be anywhere near coherent at all to tell us something useful. And there is every possibility that she will not remember who shot her. Not for days. Ianto, she might not even remember it at all." 

Ianto felt like something pulled his feet from under him. Gwen had been his beacon of hope. She had seen that wanker, she could have told them what they needed to find Jack. ‘Not remember for days’, the words echoed in his head. They couldn’t afford days. Jack couldn’t afford days, they needed to find him now. 

Ianto didn’t dare considering option three. He needed to believe that Gwen would finally remember. He needed to believe in order to not fall apart.

"I'm coming back to the hospital," Ianto replied numbly and ended the call. As if on autopilot he stuffed his phone in his pocket and scooped up the remaining files. Thrusting them into yet another bag, he walked to the main area and grabbed the other two bags and made his way to the SUV. Not caring for any possible attackers this time, he just threw the bags into the car and started it. 

The motor was running, but Ianto found it impossible to push down the accelerator. He just gripped the wheel with both hands, knuckles already turning white from the force he was gripping it with. He stared at the far wall while images of Jack ran in front of his inner eye. Pictures of Jack covered in blood, with his chest cut open, his dead eyes staring back at him, only to blink in confusion a second later and Jack coming back. Gasping, with his hands flailing around, searching for something to hold on to…searching for someone to save him from the darkness. The cuts are already healing; he looks for a friendly face, for someone that would take away the fear and the pain of being alone. But there was only one figure, covered in black clothes, the hockey mask blurred into a grotesque grimace, laughing at Jack. Laughing and raising a gun. Jack's eyes widen when he understands that there is no one to help him, when he understands that there is only more darkness waiting for him and a single tear is falling from his eyes when the shot rips through the silence. 

Ianto almost jumped in his seat when he heard the loud bang. His head shooting from one side to the other to look for the shooter, but there was no one, just a car pulling out of the garage. The sound must have been a misfire of the car engine. Leaning his head on the wheel, Ianto took a few deep breaths. There had to be a way to find Jack, he couldn't give up, he needed to find him. 

Finally pushing down the accelerator, Ianto pulled out of the parking lot and made his way back to the hospital. Maybe they would find something in the remaining files. 

And for the first time in years, he started praying to a God he never really believed in. He prayed for Jack and he prayed that Gwen would wake up to give them the information they needed.


	22. Exhaustion

When Ianto reached the hospital, he grabbed the bags with the files and the clothes for Owen and Tosh from the trunk and made his way to the entrance. Just before he entered the building he turned around, having the feeling of being watched. Dropping the bags, he pulled his gun and scanned his surroundings, but there was nothing. The wide area in front of the hospital was deserted at this time of the night. Ianto waited a moment, his gun at the ready, but he couldn't see anything. Sighing, he stuffed his gun back in the waistband of his jeans and picked the bags up. Walking up to the automatic doors, he whirled around again, scanning the area when he thought he heard someone giggling, but there was nothing. Only the trees were making rustling sounds when the wind rushed through them. 

Listening intently for a moment if the weird noise would repeat itself, Ianto finally stepped into the hospital, putting everything on his lack of sleep and his worry for Jack. Quickly making his way to the room Tosh and Owen were hopefully still in he kicked the door open, causing Owen to jump. 

"Bloody hell, can't you open the door like a normal person?" Owen muttered but stepped over to his colleague and took one of the bags from him. Opening it, he smiled. "Oh, you brought us some clothes, good thinking Teaboy." 

Tosh had noticed the confused expression on Ianto's face before the usual mask had slipped into place and stepped over to the young man. "Ianto? Is there something wrong?" 

"Huh?" Staring at the small woman for a moment, Ianto processed the question. "No... No, I don't think so. It's just... I thought I heard... but I probably imagined it." 

"What did you hear?" 

"Giggling. I thought I heard someone giggling, but when I turned around there was no one there." 

"You're right. You were probably hallucinating." Owen was already half dressed and just pulled a sweater over his head. 

"Owen!" 

"What? He is exhausted and constantly under a lot of stress like all of us. It's perfectly normal for the mind to switch off and let the imagination run free." Owen defended his diagnosis in front of Tosh. 

"It's okay Tosh. We have been through a lot and I already zoned out once before driving here. Owen's probably correct." Ianto rubbed his hands over his eyes. He felt awful, his head was throbbing and his muscles started to protest every movement. Flying five yards through the air and crashing through a fence wasn't exactly healthy for an already battered body. Pressing his hand against the stitched wound at his side, he barely stopped the groan leaving his lips. 

"Ianto?" Instantly slipping her arm around his waist, Tosh looked worriedly at her young colleague. She wanted to call out for Owen, but the medic was already at Ianto's other side. 

"Hey mate, what's wrong?" 

"I'm fine," Ianto pressed out and straightened up, only to topple over again. 

"Bollocks!" Nodding at Tosh, the both of them ushered Ianto to one of the beds and helped him to lie down. Owen was already in full doctor mode, lifting one of Ianto's eyelids, which the young man had squeezed shut, to check the pupil. Muttering to himself, Owen started to examine Ianto's body carefully, prodding his chest and abdomen, but pulled his hands away when Ianto winced and moaned in pain. Owen motioned for Tosh to help him sit Ianto up so he could pull the sweater out of the way. 

"No! What are you doing? I'm fine." Ianto, realizing, what they were doing, started to fight and struggled against the surprisingly strong hold Tosh had on him. 

"Listen mate, you almost collapsed there, let me have a look at you." 

"I've only forgotten to take the pain killers, they are in my pocket. Just give them to me and I will be... oh fuck." The pain killers had been in his jacket and his jacket was probably still in the warehouse. 

"What do you need pain killers for?" Owen enquired, managing to push Ianto's sweater up his chest. "Oh, bloody hell!" 

Tosh gasped in horror when she saw Ianto's chest covered in cuts and bruises. "What happened?" 

"Jack and I had been in an explosion," Ianto answered and finally let Owen pull the sweater over his head, revealing the full extent of his injuries. "That bastard had planted a transmitter in the Hub and had tapped into our CCTV network. I could trace the signal to a house in Splott, though. When Jack and I got there, it was empty, but we found a tech room with monitors and a computer. I tried to hack into the system and managed to trigger a bomb with that. If Jack hadn't seen it and pulled us both out in time, I wouldn't be lying here right now. But the blast hurled me several yards through the air and I crashed into a fence. I was lucky, though. Jack was crushed under a piece of brick wall." Ianto swallowed hard at the thought of Jack dying again. 

"Well, you certainly were lucky. It's just a few nasty bruises and some minor cuts. The deeper cut had already been stitched." Owen had examined Ianto, while the younger man told the story and was now pondering if he should slap Ianto for not being in bed with such injuries or thank him for ignoring the pain and getting Tosh, Gwen and himself out of that warehouse. He decided that despite everything, they were better off now thanks to Ianto. And besides that, he admired the young man for his determination and loyalty to his team. "Okay, here's the deal, you stay in bed and try to get some sleep..." Owen held up his hand when Ianto opened his mouth to protest. "I will get you some pain killers and we wake you up if there's any news." 

Finally giving in, Ianto leaned back into the cushion only to sit up again a second later. "I went through our case files again to see if there's any clue as to where Jack might be. As Gwen seemed to know our attacker, I picked only the files from the point she started working for Torchwood. I managed to go through half of them. The rest is in the bag, if you..." 

"Of course," Tosh interrupted him and smiled. "We'll look through the files; you need to rest." Pushing Ianto back down, Tosh couldn't resist gently brushing a strand of hair from his forehead. He looked even younger now than usual. 

Ianto doubted he would fall asleep, but in a matter of minutes the exhaustion took over and sent him into a light sleep. He didn't even notice when Owen gave him some pain medication with a syringe a few minutes later. 

"Gwen is still unconscious. I've talked to one of the nurses," Owen reported before grabbing the bag with the files and putting it on the free bed. 

"Do you think she will remember who shot her?" Tosh asked and climbed on her bed, already grabbing for the first file. She had changed into the clothes Ianto had brought, while Owen had been on the hunt for the pain killers. 

"I hope so, but there is no way to tell. She will be confused when she wakes up, but Gwen is a tough girl, maybe she can give us a hint. I don't see how we can find Jack without her help." 

\---oooOOooo--- 

Harkness is still asleep. I'm beginning to fear he won't wake up at all before we have to leave. 

I'm standing in front of him and looking at his limp form, only the ties preventing him from falling from the chair. His head is hanging down, his chin almost resting on his chest. His body is covered in bruises and blood, his face is already swollen. Frank and Bobby didn't hold off in the hour I gave them with Harkness. I just hope they didn't overdo it. 

He has been unconscious for two hours now, which leaves me with only three hours to play before we will take him to the place he will die. I figured it wouldn't be any harm if he sees my face now so I pulled off the mask, finally free of the plastic that had been chafing against my skin. I savour the air touching my skin and cooling it. Closing my eyes I take a few deep breaths. It feels good to be liberated of the mask and finally be myself again. 

I open my eyes and look at Harkness. Grabbing his hair I pull his head back, but he is still out. His eyes are closed, the right is swollen shut and I doubt it will open again in the short time he has left. His mouth has fallen open; the lip is split in various places and has swollen to almost its double size. I wonder what the boy sees in Harkness, wonder why so many people, man or woman, fall for his smile. 

Bending down, I press my lips on his and plunge my tongue into his mouth. Ravaging his mouth, I can taste blood when his lip starts to bleed again. Straightening up again, I wipe the blood from my own lip, looking at the red fluid now on my hand. I feel nothing besides the familiar anger that boils inside of me. Harkness is just like any other man, there is nothing special about him. 

"Frank, bring a bucket with water in here. I think it's time to wake up our sleeping prince."


	23. Revelation

When the cold water hit his body, Jack was awake instantly. He dragged instinctively on his ties and groaned when the pain hit him full force. His head was throbbing and he couldn't feel the right side of his face, which was probably a good thing, given the fact that he couldn't open his eye. But the rest of his body was screaming, the muscles were tense and cramping and he didn't think that there was one point on his torso that wasn't bruised. Blinking into the bright light, he could make out three blurred shapes. 

"Hey little prince, do you remember me?" 

Jack's confused brain focused on the voice, but couldn't really process it. Gasping when another bucketload of cold water hit his face, Jack shook his head like a dog, only to yelp in pain a second later. He made a mental note not to make any sudden movements. The muscles in his neck protested viciously and cramped, causing the throbbing in his head to intensify. He felt dizzy and sick, his stomach already objecting to all of the stress from the day. He started retching, his ribs not happy about the strain he put on them with that, but he couldn't help himself. His head spun and the urge to empty his stomach was taken over by reflexes, forcing the muscles to spasm and push the little content of his stomach to race up his gullet. Choking violently Jack was puking all over himself, feeling the humiliation of losing it in front of his captor. He knew that the control over his bladder and rectum was the next to go and concentrated hard on keeping his muscles working. The smell of his own vomit was reaching his nostrils and caused another fit of retching. Thankfully his stomach was empty and the only thing that came up his throat this time was bile, slowly burning the sore skin of his throat. 

"Are you done now?" 

That voice again. Jack tried to lift his head and look at the person, but he was met with another load of ice cold water. Shivering, he groaned when the water trickled down his skin and soaked his pants even further. But at least it washed away the vomit and the stench was no longer piercing his nose. He was just about to muster up enough strength to speak when yet another bucket of water was emptied over his head, the water getting colder each time. His teeth chattered involuntarily and he started to lose the feeling in his extremities. If they kept that up, he would freeze to death. 

"I guess that's enough for now. At least he isn't stinking anymore." 

Jerking his head in the direction of the voice, Jack tried to focus again. He blinked a few times to get the blur out of his vision and concentrated his still working eye on the person who had spoken. It took a few seconds before he could make out distinct features and another few seconds to get the person finally into focus. When his eye had sent the information back to his brain and he assembled the facts into a picture, he felt like someone had pushed a blade into his belly. He knew the face that was smiling coldly back at him, but he couldn't manage more than to croak out a horrified "You?" before his head was yanked back and pain exploded behind his eyes. 

\---oooOOooo--- 

Tosh and Owen had been through the files twice before they allowed themselves a short break. Ianto was still out and neither of them had the heart to wake him, only to tell him that they were out of options. There was nothing in the files that would have helped them to find Jack and that fact would devastate Ianto. 

Tosh had just gotten them a cup of coffee, when the door burst open and Rhys practically ran inside, letting the door crash against the wall. The loud bang was enough to wake up Ianto with a start and he sat up in his bed, looking around wildly. "Jack?" 

"No sweetie." Tosh was at his side in an instant, taking him in her arms until he found his bearings again while Owen grabbed Rhys by the arm. 

"Gwen?" He asked, already dreading the answer. 

"Yes, she woke up. I... oh god," Rhys rubbed a hand over his face, the relief that his fiancé was alive quite visible on his face. "She couldn't talk because of the ventilator, but she wanted to tell me something so I gave her a pen and paper." Rhys was crying now, the fear of losing his lover now turning into a surge of relief that was overwhelming him. "She was so frightened; I could see it in her eyes." 

Ianto had hopped down from the bed and listened intently to Rhys' outburst, but now he was running the few steps to the man, who might have the crucial answer to everything and grabbed him by the shirt, shaking him viciously. 

"What did she write down, Rhys?" Yelling at the top of his voice, it took both Tosh and Owen to wrestle the young man away from Rhys. 

Gwen's fiancé just stared shocked at Ianto, his hand clenched tightly around a piece of paper, which he now lifted slowly. Tosh stepped forward and took the paper gently from his hand, smoothing it out, while looking at Owen, who had Ianto still in a tight grip. Both his colleagues were looking at her with hopeful expressions. 

When she looked at the note, she could see from the handwriting how much pain Gwen must be in. She could barely make out the words. 

"What does it say?" Ianto's voice was begging for an answer that would bring them closer to finding Jack. 

"It's hard to read. I think the first word is "mother", the second looks like "jasmine". The last seems to be incomplete; it ends with a long line. The first letters are f, a, i and r." Tosh looked confused at her team mates. 

"She fell unconscious again while writing this," Rhys almost apologized. 

"Mother Jasmine, who is that? A nun?" Owen let go of Ianto and stemmed his hands to his hips. 

Ianto took the note from Tosh and looked at the scribbled words. The first two were written together, the third in the next line, but that could be coincidental. Gwen wasn't really in the state to write a coherent note. Now the ball was in their park and they had to figure out what it meant. 

"Fair... maybe she wanted to write down, where we could find this Mother Jasmine. Fair, fair..." Ianto looked at Tosh, then at Rhys before his gaze fell on Owen. "Fairview Hospice perhaps? I know that a few nuns from the monastery work there." 

"But that makes no sense. We’ve never been to Fairview and what is the possibility of Jack and Gwen both knowing someone there? No, it has to be something else." Tosh started pacing, thumping her finger against her teeth, when she suddenly stopped and turned around. Rummaging through the files on her bed, she finally pulled the one she was looking for out of the pile. 

"What is it, Tosh?" Owen and Ianto both stepped to her and looked at the file she had opened. 

"It can't be!" Ianto pressed out, staring disbelievingly at the file. 

\---oooOOooo--- 

When the pain ebbed away a bit, Jack opened his eye again to glimpse at his captor. He swallowed hard, hoping his voice wouldn't leave him and opened his mouth. 

"You are Jasmine's mother," he stated, his voice hoarse and tears streaming down his face at the memory of the little girl he had lost to the Fairies. In order to save the world, he had to sacrifice a seven year old girl and rip her away from her family. Her mother had every right to hate him.


	24. Horrible Choices

"The mother?" Owen still couldn't believe it. He had held Lynn when she’d cried over her lover's death and he had stopped her from running after her daughter. When he’d let her go it had already been too late. Jack bloody Harkness had sacrificed the girl to the Fairies. Deep down, Owen knew that there had been no other way, no chance to save both the girl and the world. But, the cries from the mother had haunted his dreams for a long time after that day. 

"But, it can't be her. The guy who... who..." Ianto couldn't bring himself to mention the torture. "It was a man." He shivered involuntarily, hugging himself, realizing that he was still half naked since Owen had relieved him of his hoodie earlier to examine his wounds.

Tosh looked at him, the shock quite visible on her face. "We have never seen a face and she distorted her voice. We just assumed it was a man." 

"I retconned her personally. I used level 5 retcon." Ianto's voice was still trembling. He just couldn't believe that it had been a woman all along. But then, she hadn't been the first woman that turned out to be merciless. Suzie should have taught them to always expect anything and everything. 

"We know that the right triggers can bring the memories back." Owen leant heavily against one of the beds, his hand unconsciously pressed against his chest, where the cross was cut into his skin. 

Rhys watched the shocked faces of the Torchwood members, their faces reflections of the expression his Gwenny had shown when she had written down the note. He didn't really understand everything that was going on, only that it was bad. But, now that they knew who they were fighting they should be able to find Jack. Shouldn't they? 

Rhys didn't especially like Jack and Torchwood, but it was Gwen's job and she loved it. She loved the team and he knew she cared deeply for them so it was really hard to see them this devastated. That woman, whoever she was, had severely crippled the team. Jack had been captured, Gwen had barely survived the gunshot wound and the remaining three team members in front of him looked as if they had been run over by a truck. 

Shuddering, when his gaze fell on Ianto, he didn't know how the young man could still be standing. His upper body was badly bruised and cuts ran all over his chest and the back. There was a nasty cross-shaped wound on his chest that seemed to be a little older, but even without having special medical knowledge, Rhys knew that Ianto should be in bed right now. But, he saw the same stubborn expression on his face that Gwen was wearing often. And he knew that Gwen would move heaven and Earth to get one of her team mates out of danger, ignoring her own pain in the process. Ianto showed the same determination. 

"I hope this will help you," Rhys finally whispered, and retreated back to the door. 

Tosh heard the Welshman and turned to him, sending him a thankful smile. "Yes, thank you Rhys." 

Nodding, he opened the door and made a step towards the hallway before stopping and looking back. "If you need help, you know where to find me." 

This time, all three of them turned to look at him, surprised expressions quickly changing to thankful ones. 

"Thank you, Rhys. We appreciate that. But I fear Gwen will kill us, when we get you in danger." Ianto smiled warmly at the man standing at the door, amazed by how selfless he offered his help in an obviously dangerous situation. 

Rhys cracked a smile and nodded. "You're probably right. Be careful when you bring him back." With another reassuring smile, he left them alone, quickly heading back to Gwen's hospital room. He wouldn't leave her side and felt guiltily relieved that she would be safe with him, while her team mates were heading out to face whatever danger was coming their way. 

\---oooOOooo--- 

"At least you seem to remember me. That's a start." I tighten the grip in his hair and yank his head back even further. His pain-filled groan is music to my ears. I had to wait a long time for this moment and now I will savour every second of it. 

"I'm so sorry." 

He is sobbing. The bastard is really sobbing now. I don't know what he thinks he will achieve with crying his eyes out in front of me. He can't surely hope for me to show pity, does he? 

"Do you think you can make it better by apologizing? Do you really think I will let you go and everything will be alright? Because the great Jack Harkness sobbed his eyes out and squeaked out a 'sorry'?" My voice grows louder with every word until I scream at him. I force his head back even further and bring my face close to his. "Do you think that?" My spit flies into his face, I'm so enraged that my voice flips over, ending in a high pitched scream that makes him cringe. 

"No." I can almost not hear him. His voice sounds so very small and frightened. I wonder if this really is the Jack Harkness I have come to hate. 

Laughing bitterly, I let go of his head and step back, turning around to give me a second to compose myself. The emotions running through my mind are almost overwhelming. I can finally take revenge, but it means that I have to open drawers to my soul I never wanted to open again. Images of Roy being attacked by these monsters are rushing back. My partner, my love, lying lifeless on the ground, his mouth full of rose petals, his eyes still open in shock. And the worst memory of all, Jasmine, my little Jasmine, running into the forest and her small form disappearing into nothing right before my eyes. And Harkness just stood there watching. I lost everything and he just stood there stoically and said how sorry he was. Oh, how I hated him in that moment. Just like how I hate him now. 

The team stayed for a while. Cleaning up as I now know. Then they all left me. Climbed into their car and drove off…leaving me behind with nothing but a destroyed life, without a purpose anymore. 

After that, my memories are fuzzy. I remember a man from Social Services visited me the next day. I made us some lemonade. He smiled a lot and told me that everything will get better in time. He told me how sorry he was about me losing my partner and my daughter in a car accident. I tried to explain to him that they hadn't died in a car accident, but I felt tired and he helped me to the couch and settled me there. Before I went to sleep I heard him repeat how sorry he was a few times, telling me about the accident and that they had been dead immediately. 

Even if I have no recollection of the face of that man, I suspect that it had been the boy. The boy had somehow altered my memories, because I couldn't remember a thing about the monsters and Jasmine disappearing into the forest after he had been at my house. I was grieving my family, there was a funeral and I tried to live my life, but I couldn't. 

I turn around again to look at Harkness. His chest is heaving heavily and his head is hanging down again. He seems to have lost consciousness again, but when I step over to him, he lifts his head, looking at me with one eye. He isn't showing any of the emotions I got from his team, there is no defiance. It's like he has accepted his fate and is just waiting for me to execute my final punishment. 

Oh no, Harkness. You won't get away so easily. 

"You're probably wondering why I can remember you." I know I have his attention, when his eye flickers for a moment and focuses on me. "Yes, I know what you did. You altered my memories of that day. But to be fair, you didn't do that yourself. You sent the boy to do it." A satisfied smile crosses my face, when he flinches visibly as I mention the boy. Maybe I should send Frank and Bobby out to get him. Killing the boy slowly in front of Harkness could be fun. 

It seems he can read my mind, his expression shows fear and his voice is lined with desperation when he speaks. 

"Please leave him out of this. It's not his fault." 

"No, it's your fault. But, I assume killing the boy would bring you more agony than any other action I could take." 

His stifled sob and the tears streaming down his face is all the affirmation I need. Sadly there is not enough time to get the boy. But Harkness doesn't know that. He thinks I still have his team. A smile plays over my face. 

"But, you can choose. Which one of your team should die first? The boy? The doctor? The policewoman? Or the Japanese girl?" I bend down and bring my face close to his. The pure horror in his face is enough to send me on another adrenaline rush. "You decide. Who dies first?" 

"You can't do that." 

"But, I can. And as you're always so keen in deciding who lives and who dies, I give you the chance to pick. So Harkness, who will it, be?" 

"I can't..." The tears are streaming down his face and his body is shaken by sobs. "Please." 

"If you don't do it, I will." 

"Please, I beg you." His voice cracks and he takes a ragged breath. "Please, leave them out of this. Do what you want with me, but please let them live." 

"Oh, I will do whatever I want with you, and now I want to see your heart break when I kill the boy." 

"No!" His scream is surprisingly loud and makes me smile. 

"So you do want to decide after all." 

I can see the agony that is tormenting his mind, the guilt about putting the boy before the rest of his team. He is desperately looking for a way out of this, but there is none. He is helpless and that sight alone is enough to make me buzz with joy. 

"Please." His sobbing gets stronger again. "Please don't do this." 

"Tell me Harkness. If not the boy, who shall die then?" 

"Take me, kill me!" 

"You will get your turn, but you will be the last to perish." I reach out, my fingers stroking almost gently over his face. He doesn't jerk back; I have to give him that. "Now, tell me, which one?" 

He stares at me, begging not to do this, begging for the life of his team. But he doesn't answer my question. 

"Okay then, we'll start with the boy." I turn around, motioning for Frank and Bobby to follow me. He is yelling for me to stop, not to do this. He is yelling until his voice breaks and we only hear him sobbing. 

I'm glad, Frank and Bobby have enough brains to keep quiet until we’re out of the room and far enough away for Harkness to hear us. 

"We don't have the boy or the others," Bobby hisses confused, and shares a look with Frank. 

"You know that and I know that. But he doesn't." I point to the room Harkness is still sobbing loudly in. "I'm playing with him. He will think we have killed the boy and it will destroy him."


	25. Hopes and Fears

"Okay, what's the plan?" Owen asked as he looked at Tosh and Ianto. The three of them had gathered their stuff and were headed for the SUV outside. 

Ianto was just popping another painkiller into his mouth, his face a grim mask. 

"Now we will find her and get Jack back." 

"Great. And how exactly do we do that, Teaboy? Do you have special powers we don't know about yet that allow you to sniff her out?" 

"Owen!" Tosh shot a heated glance at her colleague. She knew Owen was just as worried as the rest of them, but he needed to stop sniping at Ianto. It wasn’t helping anyone. "We will track her down the old-fashioned way. We still have her address." 

Ianto didn't look back, he practically ran out of the hospital and to the SUV. Now that they knew who was behind this, they at least had a chance of finding Jack in time. He opened the door of the car and jumped behind the wheel, already bringing the engine to life before Owen and Tosh reached the vehicle as well. Owen threw the bag with the additional weapons onto the backseat and climbed into the passenger seat, while Tosh climbed into the back, immediately starting the computer. 

Ianto didn't wait for instructions, but floored the accelerator, steering the car in the direction of the address he remembered. His heart missed a beat when Tosh's voice came from the backseat. 

"She isn't living in the house on Old Forest Road anymore. Looks like she sold the house a few months ago." 

"Damn!" Hitting his hand on the wheel, Ianto felt another hope being vaporised. 

"What do we know about her? Job? Family?" Owen turned back in his seat and looked at Toshiko. 

"I'm checking that now. She quit her job at the same time she sold the house. The only family on record is an aunt, living in Portsmouth. No siblings, parents are dead." Tosh hacked frantically on the keyboard, pulling up file after file. "She shows up on social records for about a month after quitting her job and then nothing." 

"What? She can't have disappeared, it's not possible." 

"Owen, of course that's possible, we do that on a daily basis." Tosh stated, without taking her eyes from the monitor in front of her. 

"I didn't think her the type of person to be able to do that." Ianto had stopped the SUV and turned around to Toshiko as well. “When I was at her house, she didn't strike me as a computer buff." 

"You only need enough money and the right person to make you disappear." Toshiko still didn't look up from the screen. "After selling her house she certainly had enough money. And if I remember correctly, Jack gave her a generous amount of money as well." 

"True, he wanted me to make it look like as if the money came from the insurance company of the driver who killed her family." When he received questioning looks from his team mates, Ianto amended, "That was the cover story I told her." 

"Brilliant, so we have a woman with enough money to start a small war and for some reason she gained her memory back. I can only imagine what she must have felt like." 

"Regardless, she didn't strike me as the kind of woman who would act without mercy. I mean when she was... torturing us in the warehouse, there was no remorse, no conscience." Tosh shook her head. 

"You forget Suzie." Ianto said sadly. "And love and grief can make you do a lot of things." Lowering his glance, Ianto avoided looking at his colleagues, but no one had to mention Lisa's name, they all knew what he was talking about. 

"I have something." Tosh suddenly shouted. "There is a house in Splot, which is owned by a Lynn Bennister. Bennister is Lynn Pierce’s maiden name." 

"Address?" 

Tosh rattled out the address, but Ianto didn't move the car. 

"Hey mate, didn't you hear her? Push it!" 

"That's where the explosion was," Ianto said silently, inwardly cursing himself for not checking who the owner was before Jack and he had headed there. “The house is a ruin, I doubt we will find anything useful there.”

"Oh." 

"We should have a look at it anyway. Maybe we’ll find a small clue. Something that survived the explosion and will lead us to where she is now." Tosh reached out and put her hand reassuringly on Ianto's shoulder. "We will find him." 

Nodding, Ianto put the car into gear and steered it back onto the road. He sure hoped they would find something. He had a feeling that Jack’s time was running thin.

\---oooOOooo--- 

Jack felt like his world was falling apart around him. She would kill Ianto and there was nothing he could do about it. She had faced him with the most horrifying choice and he couldn't do it. He couldn't put one of his team before the other. Not even Ianto; he could never live with that. But now he had to live without Ianto. Sobs were shaking his body and the feeling of helplessness was overwhelming. Lynn would kill his team one by one and leave him to be last. Only thing was, he would come back. Come back to a world without Ianto. Without Gwen, Toshiko and Owen. He couldn't bear the thought of that; it was ripping his heart apart. 

He had already been through this once and he had silently prayed for never having to go through it again. The memories of the Year That Never Was came back in full. The year he spent chained up, being tortured by the Master. The year in which he saw his team being killed. The Master had taken pleasure in tormenting Jack with stories about how he would squish the team like little bugs, once he had found them. And Jack had prayed that they would evade the Master, but in the end they had been caught one by one. Ianto had been the last one to be thrown to his knees in front of Jack. The Master had stripped him of his clothes, his hands cuffed behind his back, his face and body badly bruised. 

Jack squeezed his eye shut, trying to push back the memory of how the Master had abused Ianto right in front of him. The screams of his beautiful boy were still haunting him in his sleep and only Ianto's reassuring voice could hold them at bay during the night. 

Now he was going to lose Ianto again. And in this instance, the time wouldn't reverse back. Ianto would be gone forever. And it was his fault. Again. 

When a shot echoed through the house, Jack felt something break inside him.


	26. Loss

Jack felt completely empty inside. Ianto was gone. He had lost his life, because Jack had screwed up in the past. 

Numbness crept into his body; there wasn't even a trace of anger, just grief and guilt eating away at him. He had long given up on dragging at his ties. The last shred of defiance had been destroyed with the loud bang that had signalled the end of his lover. Jack couldn't even cry anymore, there were no tears left. Images of the young Welshman played in his mind, tormenting him further: Ianto smiling at him and laughing, his body writhing under him in pleasure, the blue eyes looking at him full of trust and loyalty. 

A ragged sob escaped Jack's throat. 

Trust. 

Ianto had trusted him with his life and he had lost exactly that. Being with Jack meant living on the edge and it was never Jack who lost in the end. Because Jack couldn't lose. He couldn't die. But everyone else around him died. Sooner or later, they all died. 

The familiar hatred bubbled up inside him. The hate against himself, of his immortality. Jack had always seen it as a curse, a punishment. But for all the things he had done in his life, did he really deserve this? 

His heart hurt by the thought of what the Doctor had told him. Rose just wanted to save him, but instead she had sent him to hell. A hell where he would always be alone. 

Jack had figured that out pretty quickly after Danielle.

And Ianto had been the first since Danielle he had really let in, the first person he had allowed himself to love and to be loved back after almost one hundred years. 

Jack was clenching his fists, when the old grief of losing his wife Danielle while she was still so young was gripping his soul again. She had been the first he had loved and lost after the Gamestation. They had both died when raiders broke into their house two weeks after their wedding. They had slit her throat and shot Jack. Only Jack came back to life to find his wife in a pool of her own blood. Her dead eyes staring up at him were still haunting him and he had sworn on that day that he would never get that close to anyone again. 

Then he met Ianto. 

And now the dead blue eyes of his lover would haunt his dreams as well. 

Jack felt like screaming. 

A noise from the door drew his attention and he lifted his head, his breath catching in his throat for a moment. For one fleeting second he had seen Ianto standing in the doorway, but when the person moved, he realized that it had been one of Lynn's dogsbodies. The man was smiling at him, savouring the pain and torment of the Captain. 

What had he done to piss that guy off? 

Jack chuckled humourlessly. Owen was right, he had pissed off so many people; he couldn't remember every face. 

"I see you found your humour." 

Lynn's voice cut through the room and Jack fell instantly silent. Prying both of his eyes open, he looked at her face. The grief and the anger had left deep furrows on the still young face. 

"Do you react to all dead bodies you leave in your wake with a laugh? I thought the boy meant more to you, but it seems I was mistaken." 

Her words hit him like a hammer and he couldn't suppress the strangled sob that escaped his lips. 

"You know, he asked for you before he begged for his life. I told him that I gave you the choice of saving him. You should have seen his face, when it dawned on him that you condemned him to his death rather than saving him. It was quite a pity, the expression of shock and hurt and disbelief on such a gorgeous face, but I made sure he knew that it was your decision." 

"I didn't..." Jack croaked out. The thought of Ianto believing he had chosen for him to die was too much. New sobs were shaking his body and tears streamed down his face. 

"Yes, you did. You could have chosen to spare his life for now, but you didn't. So shall we try this again? Will you decide this time or will you keep up this pathetic behaviour?" 

"What difference does it make? You will kill all of them anyway." Taking a deep breath, Jack tried to bring himself under control. She was right, he was being pathetic. Owen, Tosh and Gwen were still alive, he had to at least try and fight for their lives. "It's probably better for Ianto this way. It will spare him the grief and the agony of waiting," he pressed out, not really believing his own words.

"So, you don't care who is next?" 

"I care for my team!" Something in Jack snapped and he started to yell at Lynn. That damn woman was destroying everything he cared for and now she dared to tell him how he was feeling for his team? "I want them to live, but you only give me the choice of who will die." 

"So, you want to decide who shall live?" 

"I want all of them to live. They deserve to live..." 

"They deserve nothing!" Lynn was yelling back now, her finger pointed at Jack. "They did nothing to save my family, they are as guilty as you are." 

"They might have failed you, Lynn. But they saved thousands and millions of lives so many times, I've lost count. If you kill them, you will kill who stands between Armageddon and the people of Earth." 

Jack stared at Lynn, unphased by her hysterical laugh. 

"What the hell are you talking about?" 

"You have seen the creatures that attacked your partner; you saw what they were capable of. Do you really think they are the only threat this world has to face?" 

"You really want me to believe that, do you?" 

"It's the truth." Jack felt a beacon of hope, the hope that she would see reason and let the others go. 

"I believe you," Lynn finally stated, pulling the small device from her pocket and twisting it in her hands. "I believe that there is more out there than we know. But it changes nothing. You and your team are not the only ones capable of defending this planet. And you are certainly not worthy to fight for this planet." 

Jack stared at the egg shaped device in Lynn's hand and felt a shiver run over his back. "Where did you find that?" 

Lynn looked confused at him and then at the device in her hand. She hadn't even realized that she had pulled it from her pocket. "I found it one day in my garden. It opened my eyes and helped me to execute my plans. Everything seemed so clear the day after I found the device. I suddenly had my memories back. The memories, you stole from me, Harkness!" 

"Destroy it!" Eying the small device warily, Jack unconsciously shifted back on his chair, trying to bring as much distance between him and the device as possible. 

"Excuse me?" Lynn took a step towards Jack, gripping the device in her fist. 

"It's dangerous; it messes with people's minds." Jack started to drag at his ties, but they were as secure as before. A sudden realization made him wince. "Those energy waves we detected, I should have recognized them sooner. Please Lynn, destroy it." 

"Do you think I'm stupid? This little beauty is the reason why you are sitting here in front of me. If not for this device, I would have never regained my memories and I wouldn't have defeated Torchwood. And you expect me to destroy it?" 

"Lynn, please..." 

"Shut it, Harkness!" Stepping another stride forward, Lynn slammed the fist gripping the device into Jack's face. The force of the blow was enough to knock Jack over together with the chair. 

When he crashed to the floor a sickening crack could be heard where the bones of his fingers, trapped between the chair and the floor, gave way and broke. His howl of pain only infuriated Lynn more and she kicked the helpless man full force with her military boots. Blind rage had clouded her mind, sending her foot again and again into Jack's body. She didn't realize when his screams of pain subsided to groans and finally stopped altogether. 

Frank and Bobby had to drag her away from the bleeding man on the ground and only when she was struggling in the grip of her dogsbodies, she realized what she had done. 

\---oooOOooo--- 

I'm snapping out of my rage when Frank and Bobby drag me away from Harkness. Oh, I hate that man; he made me lose it in front of my men. I just hope I didn't kill him. This is not the end I envisioned for him. 

Stopping to struggle against the grip of my men, they realize that I have calmed down again. Straightening my jacket, I stuff the small device back into my pocket. Harkness was wrong about it, it's not dangerous, it has always helped me to achieve my goals. 

"Check if he is still alive. If he is, bring him to the car. It's time." I leave the room without looking back and hear Frank and Bobby mutter when they haul Harkness and the chair back up. Making my way to the other room, I close the door behind me. My blood is still rushing in my ears and my hands are shaking. I have never felt that much rage before in my life, but I savour the feeling. The power is mind blowing and when I look down, I can see Harkness' blood crusting my shoe. I have beaten that man into a pulp and it gives me an unbelievable satisfaction. 

My hand slips into my pocket, fingers wrapping around the device. It feels almost like electricity is running through my veins now, but it brings a welcome calmness. Taking a few deep breaths before turning around again, I open the door and step out of the room just in time to see Frank and Bobby dragging Harkness through the corridor. They obviously emptied another bucket of water over him, because his skin glistens in the light and the blood is washed away. When my men walk past me I catch a glimpse at Harkness' face. He is conscious again. Perfect. I wouldn't want him to miss the show.


	27. Determination

Following them outside to the car, I watch how Bobby and Frank haul Harkness into the boot. They have cuffed his hands behind his back so he lands hard on the metal floor of the van. His groans are still music in my ears, but I fear he will pass out again. And I can't have that. 

Time to get his adrenaline flowing again. 

Pulling my gun from the waistband of my pants, I give Bobby a sign to drag Harkness up to his knees. I want to see his face when I tell him. 

His face is distorted in pain and blood dribbles out of his mouth. He probably has internal bleeding from my treatment earlier. We need to hurry. 

I wait until his eyes focus on me, Bobby's hand in his hair is helping him to look in the right direction. 

"We're going on a little journey now. Unfortunately for you, it will be your last one. And I'm afraid you will have to do with our company as the rest of your team will be indisposed." The slight widening of his eyes is enough to satisfy me, to let me know he understands. 

"Please don't." 

He is begging again. He should have learned by now that begging won't help, but here he is, his chin is trembling and tears are running down his face. It's pathetic. Just looking at him makes my anger flare up again and I wish I really had his team here. Putting bullets into their heads would be exactly what I need now. But, I will have to settle for the panic and fear on Harkness' face. 

"Well, we can't take them with us and you can't expect me to leave them here all by themselves, do you? Say your prayers for them Harkness." Turning around, I make my way back into the house, Harkness is screaming behind me and I hear Frank and Bobby curse when the Captain almost hurls himself back out of the van. 

When I'm inside the house I wait a few seconds, listening to the furiously yelling Harkness. He is begging and pleading for me to let his team live. I close my eyes and just listen to his voice. He sounds just like me when I had screamed out my grief, watching my partner die and my daughter disappear. It only seems fitting that he is experiencing the same pain now, although his precious team won't suffer the same fate as my family. 

Lifting my gun, I take the safety off and aim at the wall in front of me. Closing my eyes I pull the trigger, three times in quick succession and the screams from outside get only louder. He is cursing now, wishing that I had died with my family. I can't blame him for that. A part of me wishes the same. 

The gun drops from my hand and I lean against the wall, my hand finds its way into my pocket, fingers curling around the small device that made my revenge possible. Pulling the gizmo out, my finger traces the engraved pattern, naturally following the lines and I feel a sudden calmness settle around me. The anger is still burning inside me, but I feel a satisfaction and completeness like never before. 

"We need to go!" 

Frank's voice pulls me suddenly out of my trance and I grip the device tightly, accidentally switching it on. I need a second to realize where I am, Harkness is still screaming, but his voice is already breaking. Looking confused at Frank for a moment, I realize the device is blinking in my hand. 

"Fuck!" Quickly switching it off, I know it was enough to alert Harkness' precious team if they are still monitoring this frequency. Turning to Frank, I glare at him. "What is it?" 

He actually takes a step back, surprised by the venom in my hissed question. "Harkness is going insane; we are having problems containing him. If we want to kill him, we have to do it now. He's struggling like a wild animal and in his state it's only a matter of time until his injuries will take care of the killing." 

Taking a deep breath, I try to get back to the calmness I felt just a minute ago, but the constantly screaming Harkness makes it impossible to concentrate. I'm just glad that it's only a short drive to the place where he will die. 

When I follow Frank back outside, after picking up my gun again, my gaze falls on Harkness. If looks could kill I would drop dead now. His eyes are staring daggers at me and his face is distorted in pain, grief and hate. Oh yes, Harkness. I hope you enjoy this, because that’s how I felt for the last nine months. 

In spite of being in a death grip by Bobby, Harkness still struggles. I wonder why, for all he knows his team is dead; there is nothing left to fight for. But, he’s probably acting on pure survival instincts now. 

Frank climbs into the boot of the van, helping Bobby to drag the Captain further in and then press him face down onto the floor. It takes both of them kneeling on the still fighting man to keep him down. The adrenaline is obviously doing its job, but it’s only a matter of time before Harkness’ injuries will win the battle. 

Quickly closing the door of the boot, I climb behind the wheel and a smile spreads over my face when I start the engine. Not long now and Harkness will be dead. 

\---oooOOooo--- 

When Ianto stopped the SUV in front of the destroyed house, the first birds signalled that dawn wasn't far away. The three of them climbed out of the car, Tosh and Owen swallowing heavily when they saw the ruins of the house in the faint light of a street lamp, but both of them were determined to find something useful in the rubble and started to make their way through scattered bricks and splintered pieces of wood. 

Stuffing his hands into the pockets of his hoodie, Ianto let his gaze wander over the mess before him, stopping dead when his eyes fell on a big stain of blood on a large piece of brick wall. He knew for certain that it was the same piece that had crushed Jack hours earlier. 

Scrambling over the rubble, Ianto knelt down next to the shattered wall, his fingers ghosting over the dried blood on the stone. Tears were threatening to fall again and he swallowed hard to push them back. 

Jack had died here. Just the thought of his lover dying and going to the dark place sent shivers down his spine. Ianto just couldn’t imagine the pain Jack was experiencing every time he was pulled from life and then thrown back into it. And now it would happen again. 

Ianto was almost sure that they would be too late, Jack had been in Lynn’s hands for hours now, there was just no way, that he was still alive. Or to put it more accurately: hadn’t died at least once. And if Lynn was really a hard, merciless woman, she would torment Jack again and again, revelling in the fact that he would come back every time. 

Pressing his hands against the cold stone, Ianto couldn’t stop the sobs that were rattling his body now. Everything came crashing down on him, the carefully repressed feelings of love, guilt and fear mixed with the anger that he had failed Jack. 

He was only marginally aware of Tosh and Owen searching through the remainder of the house. Ianto just couldn’t muster up the strength to get up and help them, his eyes were locked on the blood stain in front of him, but he didn’t even see it. His mind was full of images of Jack. 

And he remembered the broken figure sobbing in his arms the night Jack had told him about his time on the Valiant, about the Year That Never Was. If Jack had to go through something like that again, Ianto wasn’t sure he would survive. Physically, yes. But emotionally? 

A sudden beeping sound from between the rubble brought him out of his dark thoughts. His first reaction was to jerk back, expecting another timer that was activated and would blow his petty brain out, but his mind caught up quickly. He knew that sound! 

Quickly digging through the rubble, throwing bricks and dirt away, he followed the sound. The more rubble he cleared away the louder it got, but as suddenly as it had started it stopped again. Cursing loudly, Ianto continued to dig through the dirt with his bare hands, ignoring the new cuts he got on his skin in the process. 

A large pile of stones finally stopped his efforts, but there was a small gap between them. Ianto laid down on his front and reached into the gap with his arm. Feeling around for a moment, his fingers touched what he was looking for. The smooth leather felt familiar under his touch and he curled his fingers around it, pulling his prize from its confinement just when Tosh and Owen came running from inside the ruin. 

“Ianto, I picked up that strange frequency again, it was only for a few seconds, but I could pinpoint the location!” Tosh was already typing furiously on her handheld, while Owen looked around for Ianto, frowning when he saw the younger man crouched down on the ground with his arm stuck in a pile of rubble. 

“Oi, Teaboy. What are you doing there?” 

Hearing Owen shout, Tosh lifted her gaze as well and searched for Ianto, a confused look on her face. 

The Welshman just scrambled up to his feet, holding his finding up for the other two to see. 

“It’s Jack’s wristband, I heard it beeping. He must have lost it when he was… during the explosion.” Ianto couldn’t bring himself to talk about Jack’s recent death, he felt saying it out loud would act as the final straw of them losing the battle. “It must have picked up the frequency as well. Jack must have set it to alert him as soon as the signal showed up again." 

All three of them stared at the small leather band for a moment before Tosh snapped out of it. 

"Right, as I said, I could pinpoint the location from where the signal originated, I just need to cross-reference it to a map of the city." Typing away on her PDA, Tosh didn't realize when Owen and Ianto stepped closer to look at the small display. "Okay it's in Morganstown, on the outskirts of the city." 

"That's near Old Forest Road," Ianto blurted out, his brain making the connections. "She's going to take Jack to the forest where her daughter disappeared!" 

"And it will be a bloody trap." Owen put his hands on his hips, staring at the little display showing the presumed location of their Captain. "We’d better be prepared this time." 

"Well, as far as we know she has only two of her minions left. Jack and I killed three of them and you said that there were five men plus Lynn in the warehouse." Ianto stuffed the wristband into his pocket and headed for the SUV. "And even if she has a whole army, I'm not backing down now. If we have a chance to save Jack, we have to try. I'm not failing him again." 

"Whoa there, Teaboy. I didn't say we shouldn't go for it, I said we should be prepared. And that means we need to use any advantage we can get. And I'm sorry to say this, but we're not really at our best at the moment. We are all injured and I don't think we can win in a hand-to-hand-fight." 

"Then we won't let it come to that." Ianto turned around and looked grimly at his colleagues. "We kill them before they know what hit them." Walking around the SUV, Ianto opened the door and climbed behind the wheel, not waiting for a reply. 

Tosh and Owen exchanged a glance before climbing into the car as well; they had never seen Ianto like this. The young man was acting with a determined coldness that reminded them a lot of Jack. 

Ianto floored the accelerator the moment Tosh and Owen had slammed their doors shut and the SUV shot into the street. They didn't notice the figures hiding in the shadows.


	28. Anguish

Jack was only vaguely aware of the blows to his body after the first few kicks to his guts. His whole body screamed in pain, every nerve seemed to be on fire and sent message after message of searing pain to his brain. Finally, a few minutes after Lynn had gone berserk on him, his brain cut every connection and sent Jack's mind blissfully into unconsciousness. 

Unfortunately the quiet didn't last for long. 

Being dragged back into the real world when a bucket load of ice cold water hit him, Jack groaned loudly as the pain immediately shot through his body again. The throbbing in his fingers reminded him of their broken state and the cramps in his stomach, as well as the taste of blood in his mouth, told him that he had severe injuries, probably internal bleeding. But, he had no time to dwell on that as his hands were untied and roughly pulled behind his back. Cold metal met his skin as handcuffs secured his arms in the forced position. 

The sudden vertigo when he was dragged to his feet almost made him puke again and sent his body into another cacophony of screaming pain. Lynn's dogsbodies had gripped him under the arms and hauled him towards the door, almost dislocating his shoulders in the process. Jack tried to put his bare feet to work, but the command died somewhere on its way to the usually so well responding nerve endings. 

Surrendering to his non-corresponding body, Jack only barely noticed when they passed Lynn on their way out. The cold morning air made him shiver as they left the house. He was still soaking wet and only dressed in his pants, but his dress code was the least of his problems right now. 

His dizziness reached new dimensions when he was thrown into the boot of the van and landed hard on the metal floor. Groaning loudly he was actually drowning out the sound of yet another of his ribs giving in to the strain and cracking. The new pain had just reached his overloaded receptors when one of Lynn's dogsbodies dragged him up again and forced him on his knees. The world was swimming in front of his eyes and the feeling of vertigo was making his stomach do flip flops when a hand grabbed his hair and pulled his head around. 

Jack blinked a few times, trying to keep his breathing shallow to put as little strain as possible on his ribcage. His gaze finally fell on Lynn's face, which looked grimly at him. 

"We're going on a little journey now. Unfortunately for you, it will be your last one. And I'm afraid you will have to do with our company as the rest of your team will be indisposed." 

The world seemed to start tumbling down around him; she would kill the rest of his team without mercy. 

"Please don't." Jack knew he was begging, his voice sounding drained and whiny even to his own ears. But he wasn't beyond begging, he would do whatever was necessary to save the rest of his team. 

"Well, we can't take them with us and you can't expect me to leave them here all by themselves, can you? Say your prayers for them Harkness." 

Jack watched how Lynn turned her back to him and walked back to the house, her gun already in her hand. A sudden energy rushed through his body and he hurled himself forward, managing to slip from the grasp of the man currently holding him. 

"NO!" Yelling at the top of his lungs, he tried to get his legs working, but he wasn't quick enough, the other man jumped into the van, grabbing him by the throat and forcing him backwards again. "You don't have to do this! Please Lynn, don't do this." Jack fought with his newfound energy and struggled against the strong grip of his captors, ignoring the pain that seared through his body, ignoring the popping noise when his left shoulder was dislocated. "Just let them live, please Lynn I beg you!" Watching with panic in his eyes how the woman disappeared into the house, Jack doubled his efforts to get free, but to no avail, the men had him in a tight grip now. 

He was still struggling when three shots echoed through the morning air. Jerking his head up, Jack froze. His eyes wide open in shock he felt like someone had ripped his heart out and smashed it in front of his eyes. It took a few seconds until the truth finally settled in and hot, blinding anger and grief shot through his veins. He started to scream. 

"You damn bitch! You didn't have to kill them. It wasn't their fault, they were just following orders. I'm the one you can blame. Not them. Damn you! I wish you had died with your partner!" Struggling against the grip of his captors, Jack felt how he got weaker, but he wouldn't back down now. He would avenge his team. His voice was already failing him, breaking when he continued to curse Lynn Pierce's existence and wishing her to hell. He didn't even realize when one of the men slipped his arm around his neck and pulled him flush to his chest to keep him from getting away. He didn't see the second man hop out of the van and walk into the house. His mind was filled with rage and thoughts of revenge. He embraced the feeling of anger and welcomed it, having felt it often enough in his life. 

Only when Lynn reappeared in the doorway, he focused his gaze on her, putting all his hatred in his eyes. He tried to lean forward, when the arm around his neck tightened its grip and effectively cut off the air flow. Gasping for air, he had no chance to avoid the second man grabbing hold of him again. In a matter of seconds his captors managed to subdue Jack and pin him face down on the cold metal floor. Jack tried to fight them off, but knees were pressed down on his back and a hand found its way into his hair, forcing his head down hard onto the floor. He heard the boot being closed and a moment later the engine sprang to life. 

The welts of the uneven floor pressed painfully into his bruised ribcage as the van rumbled over the street and Jack felt the life seeping out of his body. His belly was hard and he knew that he was bleeding into his peritoneum. The first signs of blood loss were beginning to show, now that the adrenaline was slowly washing out of his system. He knew he didn't have long. 

And it scared him to death. 

He would die and wake up again with Lynn probably standing over him with her gun. His guts clenched when he thought of how surprised she would be that he came back after dying. And, completely healed on top of that. He knew she would be royally pissed and would keep killing him, trying to get her revenge like she had it with his team. 

A sob escaped his throat. His team. He would never see them again. He would never hear Owen make a snarky remark again. He would never witness Tosh having yet another brilliant idea again. He would never see Gwen getting married to Rhys. And he would never see Ianto again. The young man that meant so much to him. The man that owned his heart.


	29. Pain

The drive was only short, but it was time enough to drown the last bit of energy in Jack’s body. The constant pain had receded to a dull throbbing, his brain refusing to acknowledge the damage in his body. Jack knew that death was close now. He had been at this point often enough to recognize the signs. 

He couldn’t really feel his body anymore, he knew it was there and he knew he could force it to move if necessary, but it was as if he wasn’t in it. A warm and fuzzy sensation had clouded over his mind and Jack welcomed it. It was his escape from the world. Here, he could pretend that everything was okay.

When the van stopped and Lynn’s minions dragged him out of the vehicle, Jack let himself go limp. Why should he help them? There was nothing left to fight for. Not even his own life because he knew he wouldn’t lose it. He would be trapped instead, trapped in an endless cycle of life and death for as long as Lynn found pleasure in it. 

Jack closed his eyes and let his mind drift again. He smiled inwardly when memories of the time with his team popped up. There had been laughter and there had been tears and rage. But they had been his family. Now he was alone again. He just hoped that the darkness he always found after dying wasn’t all there is. He wished for them to have an afterlife, wished for them to be happy. He would remember them forever.

\---oooOOooo---

I watch as Frank and Bobby hurl Harkness out of the van. The Captain makes no effort to fight them, he just drops to the ground, lying there in the mud, unmoving. I wonder if it is too late, but he is still breathing and his eyes are moving behind closed lids. He has just given up, for him there is nothing left to fight for. He doesn’t even care for his own life.

I’ve broken him. I’ve broken the great Jack Harkness.

A smile plays over my lips. Now, there’s only one task left. He has to die.

\---oooOOooo---

Ianto was grabbing the wheel in a death grip. His face was distorted into a grim expression, his eyes fixed on the road before him. He was pushing the SUV to its limits, rarely slowing down.

Owen and Tosh had both grabbed hold to their seats, trying to avoid being thrown around in the car each time Ianto hurled the SUV around a bend or evaded one of the few cars that were unfortunate enough to be on the road this early in the day. But they knew better now to say anything. Owen’s try to lighten the mood up with the comment that Jack couldn’t die anyway had been shot down by Ianto immediately. 

Ianto had sent him an icy glare his real feelings for once not hidden behind the usual mask.

“Do you really think, Jack hadn’t died at least once yet? You know how he is, he fights and he doesn’t budge. And you have seen what Lynn is capable of. What do you think happened in the last few hours?” 

Tosh and Owen shared the same horrified expression after the realisation of what Jack was probably going through now sank in. They didn’t exactly know how much it took from Jack each time he died, but they knew enough. 

Silently urging Ianto on to go faster, all three of them stared out of the windscreen, determined expressions carved into their faces.

\---oooOOooo---

The sun is coming up slowly now and it gives the forest a surreal glow. Smiling I walk over the small path, looking up into the trees. The first sunrays are gleaming through the leaves, making patterns of light and shadows when the wind rustles through the branches. 

It’s almost too pretty for being the place of an execution.

I turn around when a loud groan from behind me gets my attention. Frank and Bobby are carrying Harkness between them, his naked feet dragging over the rough ground.

If he’s still groaning, he isn’t totally out of it. Maybe he will play a conscious part in his execution after all.

\---oooOOooo---

Jack was cursing his body. It had decided to put up one last fight, forcing his brain to acknowledge the fact that he was indeed still alive.

The screaming pain from his dislocated shoulder was piercing through his mind, blocking any other thought, reminding him of the constant strain on the pained joint. His hanging position between Lynn’s dogsbodies forced the joint even further away from its usual place, setting the nerves and pain receptors on fire. 

When one of his captors renewed his hold on him, he couldn’t suppress a groan. He squeezed his eyes shut, whishing nothing more than to die right here and now.

But his wish wasn’t granted, instead he was dragged over a muddy path, his feet scraping over stones and dead branches until he was suddenly dropped unceremoniously to the ground. With his hands still cuffed behind his back, he landed face first in the mud, his shoulder screaming once more at the sudden change of position. Groaning, Jack managed to turn his head so he wouldn’t suffocate, not really understanding his motivation for this movement, but he supposed it was his body again, acting on pure instinct.

He had no time to dwell on this thought, as he was pulled up to his knees once more. Jack blinked to get a picture of his surroundings but exploding pain made him see stars when his hands were uncuffed and retied in front of him, causing his shoulder to plop back into its usual place.

He heard a loud scream and realized that it was his own voice that echoed through the forest. Panting heavily, he was remembered of broken ribs and groaned even more. He knew that it would be over soon and for once he welcomed the darkness that would give him peace for a short time. But he was dreading the thought that his torment would start all over again, when death once more spat him out into the living world.

But for now, he wasn’t done screaming. His arms were suddenly yanked up over his head and the rest of his body was pulled up with them. The by now familiar feeling of vertigo hit with full force and Jack rolled his eyes back, the bile already rising in his throat.

He had never wished so strongly for death to claim him like right now. But his body even denied him the bliss of unconsciousness as it would send him into a coma and a resisting part of his mind was fighting this. So instead he felt every cell in his body screaming with pain while he dangled from the rope that had him hanging outstretched from the tree above him.

\---oooOOooo---

Watching how Frank and Bobby are dragging Harkness up to his knees once more and reattach the cuffs, I dwell on the scream that this movement rips from the Captain. If he can scream he is lucid enough to understand me.

I savour his screams when the rope pulls him up. This is the same tree my daughter disappeared behind. I think it merits the honour of being a help in Harkness’ death.

Frank is just securing the rope to the tree trunk, stretching it nicely over the branch he had thrown it. It gives Harkness just enough leeway to reach the ground standing on his tiptoes.

His face is distorted into a mask of pain. Tears are streaming down his face I’m sure he doesn’t even realize. The screams are slowly subsiding into a pathetic whimpering when his voice breaks. I step closer to him, having to look up to his face now. His eyes are screwed shut. Reaching out I stroke gently over his cheek, my anger flaring up in full force when he jerks back from the touch. Gripping his chin forcefully to turn him around, he loses his balance and another rasp scream escapes his lips when he is dangling from the rope, his full weight forcing the metal of the cuffs to cut into the flesh of his wrist before he manages to catch himself again.

I’m fascinated by the blood slowly trickling down his arms for a moment, before I snap back, tightening my grip on his chin even more.

“Open your eyes.”

When he’s not reacting, I reach up with my other hand grabbing his hair with my fingers, while my thumb pulls his left lid up, forcing him to look at me.

“Look at me!” I wait until his eye focuses on me. “Do you know where you are?” Smiling when I see his eye dart to the right and the left, trying to find his bearings, I press my fingers into his jaw, eliciting another groan. “This is where you killed my daughter.”

His eye starts moving again, scanning his surroundings and I know he wants to say something, but I don’t want to hear his voice so I intensify the pressure on his jaw to keep him from talking.

“I think it’s fitting for you to take your last breath here as well, don’t you?”

I let go of his head and pull my knife, revelling in the cold and smooth surface of the handle. The weight is familiar and feels good in my hand. The blade has still the blood of his team on it and I hold it out for him to see, smiling when I see in his face that he knows whose blood is tainting the knife.

I tighten the grip on the knife and look up to his face. A myriad of emotions is looking back at me; the one that strikes me is the look of sorrow. Not sorrow for himself, but for me. It makes me falter for a moment and I know he realizes it.

“I forgive you,” he croaks out.

My eyes widen in shock and if there had been any doubts if I’m doing the right thing they are now washed away. How does he dare?


	30. Rescue

Ianto steered the SUV around the last bend and practically jumped onto the brakes as soon as he saw a van parked at the edge of the forest. They were all thrown forward in their seatbelts with Tosh giving a surprised yelp.

“Bloody hell!” Owen cursed and turned to glare at Ianto, but the young man had already jumped out of the SUV and was running to the van. A van Owen recognized immediately as the one he and Tosh had been thrown into yesterday. Yesterday. Had it really only been one day since Lynn had grabbed them in that alley? Owen shook his head but was pulled back into action when Tosh called Ianto’s name.

The bloody prat was already at the van and ripped the driver’s door open, his weapon ready and pointing into the empty space. Owen finally managed to get rid of his seatbelt and followed Tosh out of the SUV.

“Ianto, wait!”

But the young man ignored him and made his way to the backdoors of the van, pulling them open. Owen cursed loudly and pulled his gun, quickly running over to Ianto. When he finally reached him, the Welshman had lowered his weapon, his eyes fixed on a spot in the car. When Owen followed his gaze, he felt his anger rise. There was blood smeared all over the floor of the van and there was no question whose blood it was.

Ianto felt his heart shatter. He tightened the grip on his gun until it was almost painful, forcing himself to turn away from the van.

“They’re gone,” he stated the obvious, needing to say it out loud to make it the cruel truth and snapping himself into action. Taking a deep breath, Ianto took a step in the direction of the forest, but a hand on his arm stopped him.

“Wait. We have to be careful,” Owen looked intensely at the young man, trying to get his point across.

“There’s no time.”

“We’re no use to Jack, if we’re dead, Ianto,” Tosh spoke up and smiled at her colleague, hoping for him to see reason. “Owen is right, we have to be careful.”

Finally nodding in defeat, Ianto let himself being pulled back to the SUV and watched how Owen retrieved the bag with their weapons from the backseat. The doctor smiled when he found three bullet proofed vests and handed one to each Tosh and Ianto before putting on the third himself. 

“You’ve packed for a small war,” Owen stated as he dug deeper into the bag and found a selection of semi-automatic machine guns and their trusty automatic handguns. Pushing one of the handguns under the waistband of his pants, he handed Tosh a second one. Ianto shook his head as Owen offered him a gun as well and lifted the Baretta he was still holding in his hand.

“I’m good. Just hand me some extra ammunition, will you?” Stuffing the offered magazines into the pockets of his vest, he checked the clip already in his weapon. He focused on the gun while reinserting the magazine, clicking the safety off and cocking it back to arm it. “We should split up, move quickly through the forest and go at them from three different directions. We’re all agreed that she would bring him to the clearing were the fairies took Jasmine?” He finally lifted his head and looked at his team mates who were nodding. “Good. It shouldn’t be far from here. Keep low and if the enemy is in sight don’t hesitate. Shoot to kill. This isn’t about making prisoners, this is about freeing Jack and I’m sure Lynn will not hesitate in killing us if we give her time to do so.” 

Owen was about to object and tell Ianto off for taking charge, but one glance at the young man’s face made him stop. This wasn’t up for debate. Ianto had stepped up as team leader after Jack and Gwen were out of the picture. Naturally it should have been Owen, but he wasn’t keen on taking the lead anyway so he just nodded and slung one of the semi-automatics over his shoulder.

“Okay, let’s go then.” Ianto nodded at Tosh and started to walk towards the wood. They hadn’t even reached the first trees when a scream ripped through the air.

“Jack,” Ianto whispered breathlessly, fighting the urge to run heedlessly into the forest. One glance at his team mates told him that they had recognized the voice as well. They had to move quickly. Motioning them to head into the woods, Ianto started to jog, picking up speed when he found a path which led him deeper between the trees. He focused on his ragged breathing and the dull sound his feet made on the soft forest soil. Crackling from his left and right told him that he wasn’t alone; Tosh and Owen had picked up speed as well and were now crashing through the bushes. He just hoped that Lynn wouldn’t hear them.

Slowing down when he knew he was close to the clearing, Ianto forced himself to take a second to calm his breathing. He would be no use if he couldn’t hit a target because he was shaking. Noticing that the crackling noises had stopped as well, he knew that Tosh and Owen were doing the same.

When another scream ripped through the quiet of the forest, Ianto’s head shot up and he started running again, this time however mindfully watching his surroundings, his body slightly bend over, his gun ready in his outstretched hand.

When he reached the clearing he felt as if some brute force was ripping his heart from his chest and he froze at the sight before him.

\---oooOOooo---

Jack didn’t expect the right hook Lynn landed on him, yelling furiously. But it ripped him off his balance again and sent him swinging in his restraints, pulling his still sore shoulder out of its rightful place. He gave a howl when the new pain shot through his body, trying desperately to get his feet back on the ground.

“How dare you condescend me! I’m the only one who can grant forgiveness, but you will never get it from me.” Lashing out with her knife she caught Jack square in the chest, leaving a deep cut that ripped another scream from the tortured man and sent him swinging again.

Almost admiring the Captain’s strength to be still conscious and not submitting to the pain and his injuries, she prepared for the last strike, lifting her knife and waiting for the screaming figure to swing back to her.

But she never got the chance to plunge the knife into Jack’s heart.

Just when she prepared to lunge forward, two shots echoed through the forest and had her whirling around. When she did, it took her instinct only milliseconds to take over and she jumped back and caught Jack around the waist, stilling him, while pressing the knife to his throat. Frank and Bobby’s dead bodies hadn’t even hit the ground by the time, she stood behind Jack, using him as a shield.

“Stand back!”

Owen and Tosh broke from the bushes on either side of the clearing, their weapons raised and trained on Lynn.

“It’s over Lynn, let him go,” Owen’s voice was calm, but menacing; he stepped carefully into the clearing, his eyes darting from the bodies on the ground to Lynn then Tosh and finally Ianto. The young man stood frozen on the path to the clearing, his gun lifted, but he hadn’t fired.

“Ianto, are you alright mate?”

Hearing his name brought Ianto finally out of his trance. Seeing Jack screaming in pain, bruised and bloodied all over, had been too much. He could only stare when Lynn had lifted her knife to deliver the final blow.

Now his head snapped up and he looked at Owen, seeing the doctor kneeling next to one of Lynn’s minions, checking for a pulse while Tosh had her weapon still trained on the woman half hidden behind Jack’s battered body. 

Jack was groaning in pain, his eyes squeezed shut and Ianto could see how his lover was fighting to keep his body in balance. His Jack was badly hurt and the person who was responsible for that stood behind him and had a knife at his throat. Something snapped inside Ianto. 

He felt anger and rage race through him like he had never felt before. And it was coupled with guilt, guilt of failing Jack once again, freezing on him instead of killing the person who was preparing to kill his lover. 

Ianto straightened his shoulders and tightened the grip on his gun. Stepping forward, he used the anger to focus. Taking a deep breath, he fixed Lynn with a glare and trained her weapon on her.

“Get away from him.” His voice was dangerously low and he didn’t stop walking until he was only a couple of yards away from her. “I will spare you, if you drop the knife and step away from him now.” Ianto felt Owen and Tosh covering him, but he was thankful that they let him deal with Lynn. He needed to end this on his own.

Jack’s head snapped up at hearing Ianto’s voice and he croaked out a disbelieving sob.

“Ianto?” But he was ignored by his lover.

“You will spare me, boy?” Lynn spat and tightened her hold on Jack, pressing one of her fingers in the cut on his chest, causing him to howl in pain again. “I don’t think you’re in any position to make threats!”

Ianto winced only slightly when he heard Jack scream again, but his gaze never left Lynn’s face. His aim never wavered. This reminded him of the incident with the blowfish when Jack had come back. Ianto hadn’t been able to shoot then, and Jack had saved the day. But this time Jack wouldn’t come to help, this time Jack was the one held captive and it was up to Ianto to save the day. 

Ianto blanked everything out like Jack had taught him. The sounds of the forest, Jack’s groans, Tosh and Owen standing next to him, all faded into the background until all he was seeing was Lynn. He saw the sweat on her brow, he saw the slight tremble in her hand that held the knife and he saw her swallowing nervously. A smile spread on his face. She wasn’t prepared to die, she was afraid and therefore she would make mistakes. He just had to wait, wait until she moved a little to the right.

“I’ll say this one last time. Drop the knife and step away from him and I’ll let you live.” Ianto’s voice was like ice and it had the desired effect on Lynn. She jerked her head and Ianto had a clear line of fire. He breathed out and crooked his finger to pull the trigger when a loud screech distracted him and a figure out of nowhere tackled him just when he fired the gun.


	31. Endings

His surroundings came rushing back at him at once when he crashed to the ground. Startled, Ianto caught himself and rolled over, using his momentum to come back up on his knees, pointing his weapon at his attacker. Blinking at the creature in front of him, it took a moment before the screaming filtered back into his perception as well. 

Jack! 

Horrified he had hit Jack with the bullet, Ianto whirled around and away from the creature, trusting that Owen and Tosh would cover him, and looked in dread in Jack's direction. But to his relief it was Lynn who was screaming and had fallen back, holding her right arm with her left hand. 

"Ianto get over here!" Owen's distressed voice cut through Lynn's screams. 

Scrambling to his feet, Ianto ignored Owen's shouts; his focus was on Jack now and to get him down from his restraints. 

"Bollocks!" Owen panted heavily, trying to calm himself back down after the creature had attacked Ianto. It had happened so fast, he hadn't been able to shoot it. Now he realized with rising panic that he knew the creature in front of him. He had seen it once before. 

"Owen, hold your fire!" Tosh shouted at him, equally panting, but trying to get a hold on the situation. She had recognized the creature as one of the so called fairies the second it had turned its face to her. Shooting it wouldn't help them, but bring only more chaos over them now. "Ianto, get away from it!" Seeing that Ianto's focus was solely aimed at Jack, Tosh took a step towards the creature still standing in the middle of them all to draw its attention away from her colleague. It looked warily around, standing slightly hunched over, its wings flapping constantly. 

"Jack!" Reaching his lover, Ianto grabbed Lynn's knife from where it had fallen to the ground and used it to cut the rope that still held Jack upright. The second the rope was severed, Jack slumped down, groaning loudly; only Ianto's arm around his waist saved him from crashing down. Gently lowering them both to the muddy ground, Ianto cradled his lover in his arms, tears already streaming down his face. 

The doctor didn't dare to take his gaze off the green, human shaped figure in front of him, his gun slightly trembling in his hands. His finger almost pulled the trigger, when it hissed at him and cocked its head to the side. 

"We're not here to hurt you, we just want to help our friend," Toshiko's gently voice caught the creature's attention and it whirled around to look at the Japanese woman who had her hands stretched out in a non-threatening gesture. 

"Tosh, what are you doing!" Owen tightened the grip on his weapon and watched the creature warily. 

"Trying to get us all out of here alive." Tosh never took her eyes off the so called fairy and smiled reassuringly. "Now go and help Ianto with Jack." 

Owen lowered his gun reluctantly and turned around just in time to see Lynn move behind Ianto, pressing her weapon against the young man's head.   
\---oooOOooo---

 

Ianto's shocked mind could only see the blood covering Jack's body. The normally so strong Captain hung limply in his arms, his chest barely moving to indicate that he was still breathing. The handsome face was badly bruised and made him almost unrecognizable. 

"Oh Jack, I'm so sorry!" Ianto whispered and rocked his lover carefully. He wasn't paying attention to his surroundings anymore. Tosh and Owen would handle whatever it was that had attacked him. The only important thing now was to get Jack out of here, to get Jack back to safety. 

He didn't register Lynn stop screaming; he didn't hear her moving behind him. It was only when his heart skipped a beat at seeing Jack prying his eyes open that he felt his head being yanked back forcefully and cold metal was pressed against his temple.   
\---oooOOooo---

 

"Ianto?" It took all of Jack's strength to croak the word out, his mind not believing what his eyes were trying to tell him. He must be in a delirium. Forcing his eyes to focus, his heart stopped beating for a moment. Yes, it was Ianto who was sitting beside him, but to his horror his young lover had a gun pressed to his head and Lynn’s face, distorted in hatred, loomed over Ianto’s shoulder. It couldn’t be! Not again.

Jack tried to move, but his body was not cooperating, he could only watch how Lynn’s finger tensed around the trigger, prepared to pull it any second.   
\---oooOOooo---

 

“Put the gun down!” Owen’s voice sounded incredibly loud in the tense atmosphere on the clearing. He had raised his weapon again and pointed it at Lynn.

The woman had Ianto in a death grip, her left arm was around the young man’s neck, without a doubt pressing down hard, making it hard for him to breathe. Her right hand was trembling, the wound in her arm bleeding profusely. But she somehow managed to press her gun to Ianto’s head. 

Tosh and the creature whirled around at Owen’s shout, both watching in horror the scene enfolding before them.

“Stand back! I will shoot the boy!” Lynn scrambled backwards on her knees, pulling Ianto with her, until her back hit the tree.  
\---oooOOooo---

 

Ianto’s world slowed down when he felt the metal against his temple and the arm pressing down on his throat. His eyes met Jack’s, who was looking up to him pleadingly, the confusion visible in his face.

Every sound was drowned out. Ianto could only hear his own blood rushing through his body, the adrenaline being pumped into every fibre of his existence. He saw Owen lifting his gun, his mouth moving as if he was talking, but Ianto couldn’t hear it. 

He felt his body being dragged backwards, the heaving breasts of his captor pressing against his back. He saw Tosh and the creature turning around while the gun was pressed even harder against his head.

He caught Jack’s eyes again, when he was forced to let his lover slip out of his arms. He saw the fear and the love in those blue eyes, saw the plea in them. Jack was begging him to stay alive, to be there when he would come back from the dead. Ianto saw the life slipping away from Jack, his eyes lost their natural glow and finally stared back at him without the twinkle of life he so loved in them. 

Ianto felt nothing but coldness inside of him; he had lost Jack once again. He turned his gaze around and was trapped by the creature who stared at him. Its eyes filled with so much life it made Ianto feel even more dead inside.

But he had to stay alive. For Jack’s sake he had to stay alive, so he closed his eyes and drew a deep, burning breath, when he had heard a voice in his mind, telling him that everything would be okay, he just had to move quickly.

When he opened his eyes again and the creature was still staring at him, he nodded shortly.  
\---oooOOooo---

 

This is all wrong; this was not how it was supposed to end. I was so close to killing Harkness and now his petty little team is here and managed to shoot my men and me. The damn boy shot me!

I feel confused and frightened. I don’t know what to do. My arm is cramped around the boy’s neck, but I don’t know what to do. I feel trapped and why is that horrible creature staring at me? It’s the same creature that killed my Roy and took my Jasmine. Now it will kill me. I’m just so damn frightened and tired. I want this to end now. 

My finger tenses around the trigger, just a bit more and the boy will be dead. But I don’t know anymore what that will mean to me. Probably nothing. Nothing means anything. 

For the first time in months, I feel hot tears running down my cheeks.  
\---oooOOooo---

 

“Let him go, mam.”

The strange voice of the creature startled everyone.

“Jasmine?”

Feeling the grip around his neck loosening, Ianto used the moment of confusion and reached back quickly, grabbing the gun and wrestled it in one smooth move away from Lynn, while at the same time using his weight to smash her against the tree before he lunged forward and rolled to the side, coming up on his knees again, now pointing Lynn’s own weapon at her.

“Don’t shoot her, human child!” The creature hissed and jumped between Ianto and Lynn.

“Get away from him!” Owen snapped back and pointed his gun at the creature, only to be stopped by Tosh’s hand on his arm.

“Owen, don’t.”

“She deserves to die!” Ianto’s voice was trembling, but he didn’t lower his gun. His eyes looking defiantly at the creature’s face now only inches apart from him. “She tried to kill us all and Jack…” 

“It’s not her fault.”

“How is it not her fault?” Ianto was screaming hysterically now, his whole body was shaking.

“It is mine.” The creature stopped flapping its wings and cowered down next to Lynn. “I left her alone. I was responsible for Roy getting killed. It’s because of me you all had to suffer. It’s because of me, Jack had to die.”

Ianto stared at the creature in front of him disbelievingly and couldn’t hold back the sobs anymore, his fingers lost their grip on the weapon and the gun fell into the mud with a quiet thud.

Lynn was slumped down at the tree. Ianto had smashed her hard enough against it to knock her unconscious. The creature carefully cradled her into its arms and gently brushed a few strands of sweaty hair from Lynn’s forehead with its long fingers, while Tosh and Owen stood aside, both quietly watching the scene.

“I’m sorry, you had to suffer.” The creature turned around and now they all could see Jasmine’s features clearly edged into its face. “But I can’t let you kill her. I will take her with me. She will never hurt anyone again. I promise.” Standing up, the creature lifted Lynn into its arms and started to walk away. Turning around once more, it smiled. “Tell Jack a thank you again.” And with the next step, it disappeared, taking Lynn with it.

“Bloody fucking hell,” Owen muttered, not really believing his eyes and ears.


	32. Epilogue

It had taken them a while to recover from the unusual ending of their rescue mission. Tosh was the first to snap out of it and gently ushered Owen to help her transport the dead bodies back to the SUV. They left Ianto with Jack, the young man already cradling his Captain in his arms again. 

Ianto had buried his face in Jack's hair, not caring for the blood and dirt that got smeared across his skin. He was repeating a quiet mantra while rocking the already stiff body. 

"Wake up, please wake up. Jack wake up." 

He didn't wake up. 

They drove back to the Hub and dealt with Lynn's deceased men and the men still in the police morgue. They wrote the necessary reports, checked on Gwen and cleared everything away. Ianto never left Jack's side. He had gently cleaned the older man, washed the blood and dirt away and dressed him in scrubs, but the skin was still cold to the touch and there was no heartbeat, no breathing…no life. 

\---oooOOooo--- 

It took Jack almost a day to come back. Flailing his arms when he gasped his way into existence, Jack's eyes darted around wildly, expecting to see Lynn's face smiling humourlessly at him, but instead he found himself safely engulfed in Ianto's arms. His eyes widened in shock and he jerked back forcefully as if the hands touching his chest were on fire. What was this now for a cruel game? Did Lynn place him in the arms of his dead lover? 

Images suddenly started to flood back into his mind, memories of searing pain, Lynn ready to plunge the knife into his chest, gunshots, sudden gentle touches, fear and the lost fight against the darkness. Jack blinked and tried to make sense of the feelings and pictures, but he felt utterly confused. Opening his eyes, he looked at the still form lying next to him. Ianto's chest was rising and falling steadily, indicating that there was still life in the slim body. But it couldn't be. Lynn had executed his lover, just like she had killed the rest of his team. 

Reaching out carefully, Jack put his hand on Ianto's chest. When a strong heartbeat gave his fingertips a tingly feeling Jack pulled his hand back in shock. He must be hallucinating! Looking around again, he expected Lynn to step out of the shadows with a mean laugh on her lips. But instead of the clearing in the woods or the dirty room of the hut, he found himself in a familiar bedroom. The blinds were closed and let only a small streak of light into the room, but it was enough to make out the well known layout of the room: the neatly arranged furniture, the always slightly open door to the bathroom, even the suit jacket already placed on a hanger at the wardrobe. This was Ianto's flat. But it couldn't be. 

Jack scrambled out of the bed and staggered backwards until his back hit the wall. Panting heavily he waited for the other shoe to drop. This felt too real to be a dream, but it was the only explanation he could come up with. Stifling a sob, when he found a set of his clothes laid out on a chair, he stripped out of the scrubs he was wearing, but couldn't for the life of him figure out why he was wearing them. Slipping his clothes on, tears started to run down his face. The clothes even smelled like the detergent Ianto was always using. 

If this was some kind of illusion, he wouldn't fight it. He would use the time he had in this quiet, peaceful fantasy before Lynn would drag him back into the cruel world, a world where Ianto would not sleep in his bed anymore but lay in his own blood on a dirty floor somewhere. 

Jack didn't dare to touch the sleeping form again in fear that it would destroy the bubble he was currently living in; instead he ran out of the flat into the cold early morning air. His mind was a mess. Producing this fantasy was the worst thing that could have happened; it felt so real and therefore it would be only more devastating when it ended. He had lost his team and no fantasy in the world could bring them back to him. 

Jack's feet carried him on autopilot through the city and not after long he found himself on the roof of his favourite building, staring out into the distance while the city beneath him slowly started coming to life again after the night. He wondered how long this illusion would keep his mind occupied; it felt so damn real, he could lose himself in it. 

"I thought I would find you here." 

Wincing, Jack squeezed his eyes shut. His fantasy Ianto had followed him; how was he supposed to stay sane if the souls of his dead friends and lovers kept haunting his mind? 

"Please step back from the edge, Jack." 

The voice sounded tired and so convincingly real, Jack felt the tears well up in his eyes again, but he didn't move. If he turned around he would destroy the illusion, he just knew it would take him back to Lynn and the pain. 

Gentle hands placed a familiar woollen fabric on his shoulders and Jack started to tremble. 

"You forgot your coat." Ianto squeezed Jack's shoulders with both hands before he pulled the older man away from the edge of the building. He had been terrified when he had woken up and found Jack gone. He could only guess what the Captain had had to endure while in Lynn's hands and nothing of it was good. Ianto had seen this before, Jack didn't know what was real after he woke up from the dead and he was struggling to get a hold back on reality. Turning his lover around with some force, Ianto sighed, when Jack averted his eyes and looked to the ground. "You're safe now, cariad." 

Jack was shaking, he felt Ianto's hands on his body, but it couldn't be. How could he feel the gentle touch if this was a fantasy, if Ianto was a ghost? 

"Please, go away." Jack barely managed to croak the words out and he was clinging to the hope that he would be allowed to stay in this illusion if he'd send Ianto away. 

It broke Ianto's heart to see his strong Captain like this, but he was determined to show Jack that he was safe again. Cupping Jack's face with his hands, he forced it up, but Jack squeezed his eyes shut as if looking at him would send everything into chaos again. "Jack, please look at me." 

"I can't." Openly sobbing now, Jack felt his legs quiver. 

"Yes you can. You're alive and safe and so am I. Please just open you eyes and see for yourself. This is real." Ianto watched the emotions flooding over Jack's face; it was rare that the Captain was showing his feelings so unguarded and it told Ianto what he had feared. Jack was broken. 

When Jack finally opened his eyes they were so full of despair and fear, Ianto's gut clenched but he kept his hands on Jack's face, knowing that every move would scare Jack away again. 

"Ianto?" It was barely a whisper, but the hope was practically pouring out of Jack's voice. 

"Yes, I'm here." Nodding, Ianto started to stroke Jack's cheeks with his thumbs and smiled openly. "I'm really here." 

"But she shot you. She shot all of you." Jack tried not to cling to the hope, but Ianto's presence in front of him was so real, so convincing that it was hard not to believe it. 

Ianto could have sobbed at hearing Jack's feebly whimpered confession. The hatred for Lynn flared up again. She had told Jack that his team was dead, that she had shot them. Ianto could only imagine the agony Jack had been in, forced to relive the Year That Never Was, being told that he had lost his team again. 

"She lied." Tilting his head so he could lock their eyes, Ianto tightened the grip on Jack's face a bit, just enough to prove his existence. "She lied to you Jack. She wanted to hurt you and she lied to you. Do you remember the warehouse?" When Jack nodded slightly, Ianto smiled. "Remember how we stormed in there? I managed to get Owen, Toshiko and Gwen out, but you were caught. We were all safe and Lynn didn't shoot us. And now you're safe as well. Lynn is gone." 

"You're real? This... this is real?" Jack's voice broke into sobs when he saw Ianto smile and nod. His legs finally gave away and he sagged to the ground, finding himself engulfed in Ianto's arms. Clasping his lover’s shirt, Jack allowed himself to break down. His tears were soaking the young man's shirt, while sobs racked his body. But the feared slip into reality never happened; Lynn didn't suddenly appear out of the shadows and put a bullet into Ianto's head. Only the sun was rising and beaming her warm light over the city, chasing the shadows and the darkness away. 

Ianto didn't know how long they were sitting on the roof before Jack's sobs slowly subsided and he didn't care. Jack was alive and safe in his arms and they had survived yet another catastrophe. It would take some time to put Jack back together, but they would make it through this. He looked down when he heard a sniffle and felt Jack's head move away from his chest. Red rimmed eyes stared up at him and Ianto lifted a hand to brush the last tears from Jack's cheek. 

"Are you really real?" 

Ianto smiled and nodded again. "Yes, I'm real." Bending down, he pressed a tender kiss to Jack's lips, feeling the older man stiffen in his arms at first but then eagerly responding. A hand found its way into his hair and pulled him even further down as the kiss became more desperate and about reminding each other that they were still alive. When they parted, they were both panting. Jack carded his hand gently through Ianto's short strands, enjoying the feel of it, enjoying the fact that he could still do it. 

"Take me home and show me what it means to be alive?" He whispered and pulled Ianto's forehead to rest against his own. 

"Willingly." 

Yes, he would show Jack that they were still alive. He would take the time to put his Captain back together before the next apocalypse came down on them and he would keep Jack from wallowing in the belief that this was his entire fault. Ianto knew that Jack would start asking questions and he would need to know the answers, but not today. Today was about them celebrating their survival. 

This would only make them stronger. 

FIN**


End file.
